India's sugar mills pivot to bioplastics, SAF amid ethanol glut

India's sugar industry is accelerating investment in biobased products, including polylactic acid plastics and sustainable aviation fuel, as ethanol production surpluses drive diversification beyond fuel blending, with executives positioning circular-economy models as the sector's next growth phase.

Balrampur Chini Mills' 80,000 metric tons PLA plant, expected to commission in 2027, represents India's first large-scale facility converting sugar into industrially compostable bioplastics targeting single-use plastic replacement, Stefan Barot, president of the chemical division at Balrampur Chini Mills, said at the Sugar, Ethanol and Bioenergy conference in Mumbai June 12-13.

The country's ethanol sector faces capacity utilization challenges, with domestic production reaching 20 billion liters/year while oil marketing companies procure only 11 billion-12 billion liters annually for the E20 mandate, leaving surplus capacity of 8 billion-9 billion liters/year.

Industry executives identified PLA, bioacetone, isobutanol for SAF, compressed biogas and distillers dried grains with solubles as priority products for revenue diversification, with India's bioeconomy target set at $300 billion within the next decade.

Feedstock expansion

Sweet sorghum cultivation as a ratoon crop between sugarcane harvests could add 500 million liters of annual ethanol capacity while improving farmer incomes without additional land or water inputs, Francis Borges, head of sustainable value chain projects at Advanta Seeds, said at the conference.

"The sugarcane is a one-year crop, so the farmer waits for payment at year-end. When you do sweet sorghum as a ratoon crop, he gets another payment within 100 days," Borges said.

Advanta's sweet sorghum hybrids deliver 17%-18% brix levels with yields of 30-40 mt/hectare of fresh biomass, providing mills with feedstock to extend crushing seasons by 30 days or more, Borges said.

The feedstock diversification addresses concerns about stagnating sugarcane acreage and yield volatility driven by El Niño weather patterns, which threaten long-term ethanol supply reliability.

Balrampur's 80,000 mt PLA plant faces initial cost competitiveness challenges against 900,000 mt polyolefin facilities producing conventional plastics, requiring enforcement of India's single-use plastic regulations to create market pull, Barot said.

"Initially, your product is more expensive. The biggest hurdle is enforcement of the law," Barot said. "There is a single-use plastic law which says straws and cutlery should be compostable."

The plant targets 1.5 kg of sugar per kg of PLA through operational optimization, down from 1.7 kg at start-up. India's per capita plastic consumption of 18-20 kg/year remains far below China and Europe at 60-65 kg/year and the US above 100 kg/year, indicating substantial growth potential for bio-based alternatives.

Fermentation-based production of bioacetone alongside ethanol offers diversification with minimal capital investment, requiring only distillation modifications to separate value-added chemicals, Rajesh Mohan, business area manager at Lallemand Biofuels & Distilled Spirits, said at the conference.

Isobutanol production through fermentation provides a pathway to SAF via alcohol-to-jet conversion, though the technology remains under development, Francesco Montecchio, global sales manager at Alfa Laval, said.

The European market offers strong demand for SAF blended with conventional jet fuel, creating immediate export opportunities for Indian producers who develop SAF capacity using low-carbon feedstocks, including sweet sorghum, Borges said.

Platts, part of S&P Global Energy, assessed SAF HEFA-SPK FOB Straits at $2,495/metric ton June 17, down $40/mt from June 16.