Automakers flagged E20 fuel contamination concerns for years: Tahseen Poonawalla

A fresh controversy has erupted over India’s E20 fuel programme after internal emails accessed by Reuters reportedly showed that a majority of Indian automobile manufacturers had raised concerns about excessive moisture and chloride contamination in E20 petrol samples. The latest revelations reinforce concerns that manufacturers had been flagging issues related to E20 fuel for years, political commentator Tahseen Poonawalla told The Federal during a discussion.

The founder of Team Bharat alleged that concerns raised by automobile manufacturers were subsequently downplayed and that the interests of vehicle owners were being ignored in favour of protecting investments in ethanol production infrastructure.

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"The concern was not suddenly discovered," he said, adding that manufacturers had already been documenting the issue through internal discussions and technical committees.

According to him, concerns specifically related to chloride contamination in E20 fuel had been raised repeatedly but had not resulted in mandatory fuel-quality standards addressing the issue.

What the report said

According to a Reuters report, internal emails from members of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), manufacturers representing roughly 67 per cent of India's automobile market, had identified elevated levels of moisture and chloride contamination in fuel samples collected across the country.

Notably, the report appeared to contradict public assurances made by both the government and some automobile manufacturers that E20 fuel posed no significant concerns.

Poonawalla argued that the findings were consistent with a letter dated July 28 that SIAM had reportedly sent to the government. That communication, he said, highlighted concerns over chloride contamination and moisture levels in E20 fuel and linked them to increasing vehicle component failures.

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He further claimed that SIAM members had been discussing chloride contamination with government agencies and standards bodies for more than two years.

Two-year concerns

Quoting from the July 28 communication, Poonawalla said automobile manufacturers had repeatedly raised concerns before committees associated with fuel quality standards.

He argued that SIAM's later claim that available data was insufficient was difficult to reconcile with what manufacturers themselves had stated in discussions over the previous two years.

Poonawalla said fuel samples had been gathered from multiple states and Union Territories across India. He claimed that manufacturers collected approximately 250 samples and found instances of elevated chloride and moisture content.

Sample findings

The chloride levels in some samples were reported to be significantly above acceptable limits. Moisture levels, too, were allegedly found to be higher than permitted thresholds in several cases.

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Poonawalla argued that the findings corresponded with information contained in both the SIAM communication and the report.

The report mentioned automakers Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra, saying these companies represented a substantial portion of India's automobile market.

Pressure claims

Poonawalla alleged that automobile companies initially raised the issue because they were witnessing an increase in failures of vehicle components such as fuel injectors, fuel pumps and other parts directly exposed to fuel and engine emissions.

He claimed manufacturers became concerned after seeing rising requests for replacement parts from customers. According to him, once concerns were formally communicated to the government, pressure was exerted on manufacturers to retract or soften their position.

Poonawalla argued that the timing of SIAM's subsequent clarification raised questions about whether the organisation had changed its position because of external pressure rather than fresh evidence.

Transparency demand

Poonawalla alleged that government agencies had promised to make relevant documents public but had not done so. He said the lack of publicly available technical data had contributed to confusion and mistrust surrounding the policy.