Sugar firms may seek govt nod to retail green fuel from their own premises

The plan is to convert sugar factories into full-scale 'green energy hubs'

To boost ethanol consumption and build an additional revenue stream, sugar factories are working on a plan to convert their manufacturing units into “green energy hubs” that will retail fuel doped with ethanol, produce and sell bio-CNG to meet local needs, and act as centres of multi-point access to energy for local consumers, a significant section of whom are likely to be farmers.

A basic blueprint of the proposal has been discussed among top industry 

officials and associations such as the Indian Sugar Mills Association (ISMA) and the National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Factories (NFCSF), officials said.

The ISMA is