NEW DELHI: India aims to increase the use of biofuels to cut its oil import bill by 120 billion rupees ($1.7bn) by 2022 and reduce carbon emissions, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday.

India is the world’s third-biggest oil importer and consumer and ships in about 80 per cent of its crude needs, but is gradually building capacity to increase its output of biofuels.

The South Asian nation plans to build 12 bio-refineries costing 100bn rupees to produce fuel from items including crop stubble, plant waste and municipal solid waste, Modi said.

“Biofuels can help reduce import dependency on crude oil. They can contribute to a cleaner environment, generate additional income for farmers and rural employment,” he said at an event in New Delhi to celebrate World Biofuel Day.

Modi, who faces elections next year, said building the bio-fuel refineries would create 150,000 new jobs, but did not give a timeframe for when they would all be up and running.

Published in Dawn, August 11th, 2018