E20 Petrol And Ethanol Blending Explained: Do Higher Grades Petrol Contain Less Ethanol?

With E20 petrol now reaching pumps across the country, it has ignited a fresh round of questions among car buyers: what exactly is E20, and how do ethanol blends differ across various fuel providers? However, a recent report has confirmed that all petrol grades, except one, are now E20 compliant. Before we get into the more details, let’s first understand the E20 petrol:

What is E20 Petrol?

E20 petrol is a fuel blend consisting of 80 percent petrol and 20 percent ethanol. The ethanol is sourced from plant based materials such as sugarcane or corn. It is then fermented and processed for the use in petrol.

As ethanol blended petrol helps in reducing emissions and lowers the dependence on pure petrol, the Government of India has mandated its supply across the country, while car manufactures have also started selling E20 compliant cars in the country.

Every Petrol Grade is Now E20, Except 100-Octane

Seeking clarity on the E20 topic, when the public reached out to oil companies such as Indian Oil, Hindustan Petroleum (HP), Bharat Petroleum (BP), and Shell on social media, they responded by saying that their premium or high-octane petrol contain a lower ethanol blend, i.e., either E10 or E15, however, the reality is completely different.

According to a news source, it has been confirmed that there is no intermediate blending. This means Hindustan Petroleum’s Power 95, Indian Oil’s XP95 and XP99, Bharat Petroleum’s Speed 97, Shell’s V-Power, and other premium fuels are now all E20, containing 20 percent ethanol. Only 100-octane petrol (such as XP100 or Power 100) is ethanol-free.

Regular Petrol Is Now 95-Octane

Mixing ethanol with gasoline actually increases its Research Octane Number (RON). According to reports, even regular base E20 petrol now has an increased octane rating of 95. Before E20, most base petrol from multiple oil companies had 91-octane rating.

Premium Petrols Still Have Additives

In case you are wondering, if the regular base petrol is 95 octane, then what’s the point of premium grade fuels like XP 95 or Power 95? As per reports, these premium petrol grades contain additives that help prevent corrosion of engine parts.

Why The Debate?

All new vehicles currently sold in India are E20 compliant, but those manufactured before 2024 are not entirely compatible with the newly introduced E20 petrol. This has sparked debate among owners of older vehicles about the potential impact of E20 fuel on their engines, especially for cars more than 5 years or 10 years of age.

Recently, Toyota also confirmed that it is not advisable to use E20 petrol in cars that are not compatible with this fuel. Using E20 on non-E20 compliant Toyota cars will also void warranty of the impacted parts. Reportedly, Maruti Suzuki is also planning to sell E20 conversion kits for older cars to ensure fuss free running. All of this is leading to the path that E20 might have some negative effect on your vehicle.

While a 20 percent blend may seem minimal, its long-term effects on older vehicles is yet to be seen properly, despite the government claiming owners wouldn’t be facing any issues. As per speculations and reports, the old cars might deliver slightly lower efficiency on E20 petrol, but the effect is said to be very low.

Addressing public concern about E20, Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas of India, said that in Brazil, E27 (with 27 percent blending) is already in since long and there’s no engine failure reported because of this. He also admitted that there might be loss of efficiency and performance in older cars, but that will be just up to 3 percent, which is negligible.

What are your thoughts on E20 petrol and which type of fuel do you use for your vehicle? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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