PM inaugurates India’s first bamboo-based ethanol plant in Assam

15 SEPTEMBER 2025

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated India’s first bamboo-based ethanol plant at Golaghat, Assam.
The plant, set up by Assam Bio-Ethanol Private Ltd. (ABEL) near the Numaligarh Refinery, is described as the world’s first green bamboo bioethanol facility and a zero-waste project.
The bioethanol plant cost ₹5,000 crore and aims to promote clean energy and reduce dependence on fossil fuels.
The plant will use five lakh tonnes of green bamboo annually from Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, and other northeastern States.
The project is a joint venture of Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL), Fortum (Finland), and Chempolis OY (Finland).
The facility is expected to provide a ₹200-crore boost to Assam’s rural economy.
Modi said the plant would benefit local farmers and tribal communities, with government support for bamboo cultivation and procurement.
Scientifically bamboo is not a tree but grass.
But the Indian Forest Act, 1927 considered it a tree. Accordingly, cutting bamboo from outside forests and transporting it was made unlawful.
In 2017, an amendment was made to Indian Forest Act, 1927 and bamboo has been removed from the category of tree.
Modi stressed India’s need for energy self-sufficiency, citing growing demand under the Viksit Bharat vision, and noted efforts in deep-water hydrocarbon exploration alongside a push for solar and other green energy sources.