Nitin Gadkari to unveil first methanol-run buses in Bengaluru on March 12

The concept of “Methanol Economy” is being actively pursued China, Italy, Sweden, Israel, America, Australia, Japan and many other European countries. In the transport sector, 10 per cent of the fuel in China is methanol,” said a statement by NITI Aayog.

A senior BMTC official told news platform Moneycontrol that the trial run of MD15 (diesel with 15 per cent methanol) buses will be started from Vidhana Soudha at 5:30 pm.

In a pilot project, BMTC is planning to launch 80 buses that will run on methanol fuel and 20 Ashok Leyland Buses will also be run in the initial stages. As part of the project, Indian Oil Corporation will provide free diesel and methanol for three months.

Moneycontrol reports that a prototype of the M100 (100 per cent methanol) truck will also be unveiled at the event.

Methanol can be produced through the reaction of carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and hydrogen, also known as syngas. Syngas can be produced from various sources such as natural gas, coal or biomass.

Methanol can be blended with gasoline or used as a standalone fuel in vehicles with modified engines. It has a high octane rating, which means it can improve engine performance and reduce harmful emissions.

The project comes at a time when several state governments and the central government are working on providing cleaner fuel options. The National Biofuel Policy also talks about blending ethanol as a cleaner, cost-effective alternative to fossil fuel-based products.