The Bombay High Court in a
land mark ruling has relieved the restriction of MSHSD control order, 2005, for
sale of biodiesel as a transportation fuel into internal combustion engines.
Prior to this, due to MSHSD
Motor Spirit high-speed diesel control order 2005, under clause 3.5, sale of
fuel was not permitted for transportation, without having the marketing rights
in terms of this Act duly given by the Ministry.
With this landmark order bio
fuel manufacturers will now be able to directly sell provided they meet the
required quality standard without any restrictions and hence the market
accessibility increases. To get the authorization of marketing rights, the
entry barrier set by the ministry is a Rs 2,000 crore investment into the
petroleum industry and authorisation to market transportation fuels. Companies
are also required to invest Rs. 2000 crore, in exploration and production
(E&P), refining, pipelines or terminals.
This has been amended by MSHSD
control order 2015 and 2017, and marketing resolution 2002 and further amended
in 2014 but the restriction largely remained.
The relief also holds
significance as it shall open new avenues in the country with respect to the BS
VI and Euro VI-compliant fuel that meets the fuel standards of BIS:1460
(Indian) and EN590:2013 (European). These are also the recommended standards by
all automotive manufacturers for usage of such fuels in their vehicles,
industry experts opined.
The ruling now facilitates the
availability of ‘Indizel’ – a drop-in bio-fuel product by My Eco Energy Pvt.
Ltd, which was the petitioner in this case. This drop-in bio-fuel, which is
seamlessly compatible with all diesel engines without any modification for its
usage, not only solves all the current diesel problems but also gives
extraordinary results in performance, economy, efficiency, and emissions. This
drop-in bio-fuel is an easy substitute for conventional fuel and is compatible
with all diesel engines without any modification required, for its usage in any
proportion.