Global Biofuels Alliance: Securing a green future

India's Global Biofuels Alliance (GBA) is a historic step in promoting clean energy and may a go a long way in making country self-reliant in clean energy

Aimed at promoting the use of clean fuel, this global biofuel alliance built on ethanol has the potential to effectively address the issue of climate change and limit its devastating impacts across the globe . This historic step in the global energy sector also bodes well for the agriculture sector, which could bring new prosperity to millions of farmers in India as well as other agriculture-intensive countries. Additionally, the United States and Brazil, along with India, being its founding members, will help accelerate global efforts to meet the net zero emissions target by facilitating trade in biofuels derived from sources including plant and animal waste. This will help.

By announcing the Global Biofuels Alliance (GBA), India has made it clear that by developing a coalition of governments, international organizations and industry to facilitate the adoption of biofuels, India wants to effectively mitigate catastrophic climate change be addressed. This new organization brings together the largest consumers and producers of biofuels to drive the development and deployment of biofuels, an initiative that aims to position biofuels as key to the energy transition and contribute to jobs and economic growth have to give.

The India-led GBA also reflects the action-oriented nature of India's positive agenda as the G20 Chair and representing the “Voice of the Global-South ”. The GBA will support the worldwide development and deployment of sustainable biofuels by promoting capacity-building exercises across the value chain, technical assistance to national programs and policy lesson-sharing. It will also facilitate mobilizing a virtual marketplace to connect industries, countries, ecosystem players and key stakeholders to assist in mapping demand and supply, as well as connecting technology providers to end users.

The GBA will also facilitate the development, adoption and implementation of internationally recognized standards, codes , sustainability principles and regulations to encourage biofuels adoption and trade. This initiative will be beneficial for India on many fronts . The GBA, as a concrete outcome of the G20 Chairmanship, will help strengthen India's position globally. Furthermore , the alliance will focus on cooperation and provide additional opportunities to Indian industries in the form of technology exports and equipment exports. This initiative will also help in accelerating the country's existing biofuel programs such as PM-Jeevan Yojana, Saatand and Gobardhan Yojana, thereby contributing to increased farmers' income, employment generation and overall development.

The global ethanol market is growing at a good rate. It was valued at US$99.06 billion in 2022 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 5.1% and cross US$162.12 billion by 2032. According to the IEA, the net zero target will lead to 3.5-5x biofuel growth potential by 2050. Creating a big opportunity for India. 19 countries and 12 international organizations have already agreed to join the group. Additionally, seven G20 countries are supporting the GBA. These countries as well as the World Bank, Asian Development Bank and many others have already joined this group. GBA members are major producers and consumers of biofuels. For example, the United States with 52%, Brazil with 30% and India with 3% account for about 85% share and about 81% in ethanol production.

Undoubtedly, biofuels have a huge role to play in a clean, green and prosperous tomorrow. It promotes economic prosperity, energy security, access and affordability while being sustainable and supporting decarbonization . Furthermore, technological advancements provide many biofuel feedstock options such as sugarcane, maize, agricultural waste, bamboo, etc., and further collaboration among G20 countries could help further the development of the global biofuels market and biofuels in the future can realize its full potential.