India’s state oil firms now sell biodiesel blended diesel at some pumps. Indian Oil, BPCL and HPCL supply diesel with 0.5% to 5% biodiesel in some places. An industry executive told Hindustan Times this. Fact Newsdesk reported the same figures.
Dealers see B2 and B5 on invoices
Pumps do not display the blend. However, some dealers showed invoices that list batches marked B2 and B5. These codes give the share of biodiesel in the diesel. As a result, some outlets now get more biodiesel than the national average.
That average is low. Indian Oil says it bought about 200 million litres of biodiesel from April 2024 to February 2025, for an average blend of 0.57%.
Biodiesel blended diesel and fuel policy
The move fits the National Policy on Biofuels. Released in 2022, it sets a target of 5% biodiesel in diesel by 2030. Meanwhile, ethanol blending in petrol reached 20% in 2025-26, five years ahead of schedule.
Even so, dealers have questions. One asked how pumps can check a blend that refiners mix upstream. In addition, it is not clear which feedstock the biodiesel comes from. The oil firms and the petroleum ministry did not reply to queries, the paper said.
Why it matters
Crude costs are high because of the war in West Asia. Private retailers have raised petrol by Rs 5 a litre and diesel by Rs 3, a dealer said. State firms, however, still sell diesel at Rs 95.20 a litre in Delhi. So the blend mix could matter for their margins. Meanwhile, experts say blends of B5 or lower have little effect on engines.
For more on India’s biofuel choices, see our analysis of zero sugar diversion for ethanol.
