Now Reading: SIAM withdraws letter that raised concerns over E20 fuel quality
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SIAM withdraws letter that raised concerns over E20 fuel quality
The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers has withdrawn a letter it sent to the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas flagging contamination concerns in E20 fuel, saying the numbers need authentication through…
The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers has withdrawn a letter it sent to the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas flagging contamination concerns in E20 fuel, saying the numbers need authentication through region-by-region data and consultation with member manufacturers. SIAM said the letter was part of routine technical exchanges between industry bodies, oil marketing companies, vehicle makers and testing agencies. The withdrawn communication had reportedly pointed to corrosion from high chloride content and to moisture above 1 per cent causing fuel separation that can stall a vehicle right after fuelling. SIAM said the ministry has set a 3 ppm guideline for chloride and sulphur in blended ethanol, and that oil marketing companies test for water ingress eight to twelve times a day at more than 87,000 outlets, adding there was no cause for concern. AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal alleged the Centre had pressured SIAM into withdrawing the letter, a claim the report said remained unverified.
Indian Opinion Analysis
SIAM's own explanation and Kejriwal's allegation point to two different stories inside the same withdrawal: the industry body says its numbers were provisional and needed wider regional verification, while Kejriwal says the government leaned on it to make the concerns disappear, a claim neither SIAM nor the Centre has confirmed or denied. What is not in dispute is the underlying technical detail SIAM itself supplied, chloride-linked corrosion and moisture-driven fuel separation above 1 per cent, and the mitigations it cites, the 3 ppm chloride and sulphur guideline and daily water-ingress testing at more than 87,000 outlets. Whether SIAM actually publishes the region-by-region data these figures still need will settle whether the contamination concern was resolved or merely shelved.
Source: www.siasat.com
This brief was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
