ICRISAT says sweet sorghum “ideal for India” as “food and fuel” crop

February 19, 2008

In India, the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), based in Hyderabad, said that sweet sorghum is ideal as a “food and fuel” crop for India, based on the plant providing 8 units of energy for every unit of fossil-fuel energy invested. The National Sorghum Producersâ€™ research director added that India has a 4 Mgy sweet sorghum plan in operation and that China is planning a 40 Mgy facility. Sorghum is grown in hilly and semi-arid areas where food crops have low yields that are not commercially viable.

Tata Chemicals will invest $12.7 million in a 3 Mgy sweet sorghum ethanol project in Nanded, Maharashtra. The facility, which will be constructed by Praj Industries, will open in 2010. Tata said that, if the plant is successful, the company would expand its operations and said that it is exploring jatropha cultivation five labs in Maharashtra and Gujarat.
Tata Chemicals (TCL) recently said that it would join the Sweet Sorghum Ethanol Research Consortium. By joining the Consortium, TCL will have access to Consortium research, including cultivation best practices and superior hybrids.

Earlier this month, Rusni Distilleries is planning to double its sweet sorghum ethanol capacity to 8 Mgy in March 2008, and Ultimate Bio Fuels has announced a 19 Mgy sweet sorghum facility in Visakhapatnam.

The completion of the projects will increase India’s sweet sorgum ethanol capacity to 38 Mgy.

Researchers debate sweet sorghum: higher yields, yet uneconomical due to short growing season

Researchers are looking more closely at sweet sorghum as a feedstock for ethanol, as the price of corn continues to soar. With yields of up to 600 gallons per acre, researchers at Oklahoma State and t...

DeGrande proposes $30 million sweet sorghum ethanol project in Florida

In Florida, DeGrande BioFuels has proposed a $30 million project in Flagler County to produce ethanol from sweet sorghum. The company said that 10,000 acres of the crop would be needed to support the ...

Rusni Distilleries, United Bio Fuels expansions take India’s sweet sorghum ethanol capacity to 38 Mgy; the feedstock grows in popularity worldwide

In India, Rusni Distilleries is planning to double its sweet sorghum ethanol capacity to 8 Mgy in March 2008, and Ultimate Bio Fuels has announced a 19 Mgy sweet sorghum facility in Visakhapatnam. ...

India’s Tata joins sweet sorghum consortium as feedstock gains traction

In India, Tata Chemicals (TCL) said that it would join the Sweet Sorghum Ethanol Research Consortium. TCL recently began construction of a sweet sorghum-based ethanol plant in Nanded, Maharashta. By ...

Australian project tests sorghum as sugar cane rotation crop in Queensland for ethanol potential

In Australia, a sorghum-based ethanol plant is in planning in the Wide Bay region of Queensland. AgriFuels, which is testing sorghum production in the area, said that an ethanol plant would use would ...

Tata Chemicals to build 3 Mgy sweet sorghum plant in Maharashtra, India

In India, Tata Chemicals will establish a sweet sorghum-based ethanol plant in Nanded, Maharashtra with an initial capacity of 3 Mgy....

Written by Jim Lane · Filed Under International, Producer News