Ethanol maker BCL Industries to increase distillery capacity to 850 KLPD to meet increasing demand

BCL Industries, one of the largest grain-based manufacturers of Extra Neutral Alcohol (ENA) and ethanol in the country, has announced plans to expand the capacity of its distilleries to meet the rising demand.

The development assumes significance as it comes in the backdrop of the government's recent decision to hike the ethanol price twice to keep up with the momentum of meeting the 12 per cent blending target of ethanol with petrol for the 2022-23 ethanol supply year, ending November. Oil marketing companies (OMCs) procure a large quantity of ethanol from several industry players.

BCL Industries, a part of the Mittal group, said in an investors presentation that it has plans in place to increase the capacity of the group's distilleries to an 850-kilo litre per day (KLPD) in the next two years. 

At present, the manufacturing facilities of BCL have a total capacity of 400 KLPD in Bathinda (Punjab) and 200 KLPD in Kharagpur (West Bengal).

"BCL Industries has plans to take up the total group distillery capacity to 850 KLPD over the next two years," the company said in an investors presentation.

Kushal Mittal, joint MD of BCL Industries, in an exclusive interview with Zee Business, recently said that the company has commissioned a boiler fired on Paddy Straw along with its 200KLPD distillery in Bhatinda. This, he said, will help in diversifying its fuel needs.

Meanwhile, BCL added that it has introduced an eco-friendly production and distribution system in the manufacturing process, thus becoming the only company in the country that has a forward and backwards integrated Distillery-Ethanol Industry plant. 

BCL Industries is one of the largest agro-processing companies in the country business interests in grain-based ethanol and ENA, edible oils, rice milling and real estate.

BCL Industries shares on Thursday gained over 2 per cent to touch the day's high at Rs 502. The stock is less than 10 per cent away from its 52-week high of Rs 534.50.