Sona Machinery enters ethanol segment, offers EPC solutions for grain-based distilleries

New Delhi: Sona Machinery, a leading player in the agro-processing equipment manufacturing industry, is now gearing up to enter India’s enormous ethanol production market. The company will serve as a full-service EPC solution provider, providing engineering, procurement, and commissioning services as well as cutting-edge turnkey solutions to grain-based distilleries across the country.

Sona Machinery’s expansion into a new business vertical comes at a time when India is aggressively pushing to more than double its ethanol production capacity from the current 684 crore litres to 1,500 crore litres. This increased production will be integral to achieving the government’s ambitious target to have a 20% ethanol blend in petrol fuels by 2025. If achieved, this target is expected to save foreign exchange worth INR 30,000 crore every year while also improving India’s energy security and reducing pollution. It is this massive market opportunity that Sona Machinery aims to tap into.

Speaking on the development, Vasu Naren, Managing Director & CEO, Sona Machinery, said, “Ethanol is one of the most important ingredients for a wide range of industrial applications such as drinks, drugs, plastics, lacquers, polishes, plasticizers, and cosmetics. It is also increasingly finding adoption as a biofuel and is being used to blend conventional oil-based fuels such as petrol and diesel to reduce their environmental impact and cost. Some countries, such as Brazil, have already made the switch over to 100% ethanol fuel. India, as a grain-rich economy, has similar potential. Given its impact on both the environment and economy, ethanol will be an important ingredient in the making of a future-ready nation. Sona Machinery is delighted to contribute to this growth story with full range of EPC services and turnkey solutions.”

“Sona Machinery will own the end-to-end process of establishing a grain-based ethanol manufacturing facility. Doing so will help us unlock deep synergies that will minimize waste, improve productivity and profitability, and ensure seamless scalability for our clients,” he added.

Sona Machinery’s key differentiation comes from the fact that we will manufacture 90% of the machinery required for milling and handling starch-rich grain such as rice, maize, millets, and wheat. These solutions will cover all key processes, from cleaning and destoning to grinding and weighing. We will also provide a full range of engineering services, including designing, drawings, and structural blueprints, and be responsible for the procurement of material, electrical devices, and machinery required to set up grain processing facilities. The organisation will also manage the commissioning, structural fitting and fabrication, and silo creation as well.