NEW DELHI, October 26 (Aalimi Nation) – The Centre has amended the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989, to allow E100 fuel, which is 100 per cent ethanol, in flex-fuel vehicles, with the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways issuing a gazette notification on Monday.
The change adds E100 alongside E85, the 85 per cent ethanol blend, in the emission provisions for flex-fuel vehicles. In Rule 115, which deals with emission standards, references to E85 now read "E85 or E100". The notification, numbered G.S.R. 911(E), says the amended rules come into force on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette.
E100 fuel rules limited to flex-fuel vehicles
The ministry has been clear that the permission is narrow. The notification states that "E85 or E100 shall be used in the vehicles designed by the original equipment manufacturers as Flex-fuel vehicles." Government statements said the fuels can be used only in vehicles specifically designed and certified for them. Cars, scooters and other vehicles built for ordinary petrol or for E20, the 20 per cent ethanol blend sold at most pumps, cannot run on E85 or E100.
The amendment also raises the gross vehicle weight threshold used in the relevant emission standards from 3,000 kg to 3,500 kg. The notification does not say when E100 fuel will become commercially available at retail outlets across the country, and it does not name any manufacturer or model.
The practical effect is that vehicle makers now have a clear regulatory basis to design, certify and launch vehicles that run on near-pure bio-ethanol. Until now, the emission norms for flex-fuel vehicles referred only to E85. No company has announced a launch following the notification.
Process and background
The amendment follows a draft that the ministry published on April 27, 2026, inviting objections and suggestions from the public and stakeholders. The ministry said it considered the comments it received before finalising the rules.
The decision fits into the government's long-running effort to expand the use of ethanol in transport and reduce dependence on imported crude oil. India has steadily raised the share of ethanol blended into petrol, and the government has promoted flex-fuel technology as a way to widen the use of domestically produced biofuels. The E85 blend was already recognised under the motor vehicle rules for four-wheelers, three-wheelers and two-wheelers, which means the latest notification extends an existing framework instead of creating a new category of vehicle.
The rules take effect on publication, but the supply side remains open. Vehicle makers will have to complete design and certification work for E100-compatible models, and fuel retailers will have to decide how and where to offer a fuel with such a high ethanol share. The notification itself does not address pricing, distribution or incentives for buyers.
Officials have not announced a timeline for those steps. For now, owners of ordinary petrol vehicles are not affected, and the government has stressed that E100 must not be used in them.
