The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $2.5 million technical assistance to support advanced biofuel development in India. An ADB statement said that this grant is funded from the Asia Clean Energy Fund, financed by the Japanese government under the Clean Energy Financing Partnership Facility, and the Republic of Korea’s e-Asia and Knowledge Partnership Fund.

“India has massive amount of wastes, but crop burning causes severe air pollution. If agricultural waste can be collected effectively as feedstock for biofuels, its sales will be able to supplement farmers’ income and negate the need to burn crop waste,” the ADB statement said.

“Using novel technology, second-generation biofuels could be produced from non-edible sources like agricultural residue, municipal solid waste, and used cooking oil. They can be used as bioethanol, biogas, and biodiesel for energy, transport, manufacturing, and medical purposes. This renewable energy will lower net greenhouse gas emission without threatening food security,” the statement added.

Technical and financial barriers discourage commercial production of biofuels, such as the absence of technology standards, lack of feedstock supply chain mechanism, limited access to finance, and resultant high production costs and financial viability risks. According to ADB, this TA will help address these obstacles and prepare for advanced biofuels’ commercial application and large-scale production.

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