Sugar mills can now sell potash derived from molasses to fertiliser firms

livemint.com:

₹4,263 per metric tonne for the sale of PDM by sugar mills to fertiliser companies for the current year. PDM manufacturers can also claim a subsidy at ₹345 per ton at current rates under Nutrient Based Subsidy Scheme (NBS) of the department of fertilisers. Sugar mills and fertiliser companies will now discuss how they can enter into long-term sale and purchase agreements for PDM.

PDM, a potassium-rich fertiliser, is a by-product of the sugar-based ethanol industry, derived from ash in molasses-based distilleries. India currently imports 100% of the potash it needs for fertilisers, in the form of muriate of potash (MOP). The government has been trying to make India self-sufficient in fertilisers.

It aims to achieve self-sufficiency in urea by 2025 by increasing production from 30 million tonnes to 31-31.5 million tonnes and replacing demand for 2.5 million tonnes with alternatives such as nano urea and urea gold. The target could be achieved by setting up new plants with attractive incentives for manufacturers, union chemicals and fertilisers minister Mansukh Mandaviya told Mint in a recent interview. “Production of PDM domestically will reduce import dependency and will make India atmanirbhar (self-reliant) in the production of PDM.

The goal is to produce 1 to 1.2 million tonnes of potash ash from ethanol distilleries and use it in the farming sector. At present about 500,000 tonnes of potash ash generated from ethanol distilleries is being sold domestically," Chopra said. Distilleries produce a waste chemical called spent wash during ethanol production, which is burned to produce ash.