New Delhi, April 6: The local unit of automaker DaimlerChrysler AG today began the trial-run of a C-class Mercedes Benz sedan, powered by a type of diesel developed from extracts of the ‘Jatropha’ plant.
The biodiesel project, initiated last year in partnership with state-owned Council for Scientific and Industrial Research and the German Hohenheim University, will demonstrate the viability of this diesel as a suitable alternative to conventional fuels, said a company release.
“The production of low-pollutant fuels from renewable raw materials is just one of the project’s goals,” it said.
“The road test will offer valuable findings with respect to the characteristics of biodiesel under demanding terrains and weather conditions,” said Hans-Michael Huber, chief executive officer of DaimlerChrysler India.
The Indian unit assembles the C, E and S-class Mercedes Benz sedans at DaimlerChrysler’s plant in Pune.
In 2003, it sold 1,518 cars, posting sales of Rs 434 crore and profit before tax of Rs 34 crore, its third straight year in the black.
“Through this trial-run of around 5,000 kilometres, we will conduct further tests for emission properties, power, and drive systems compatibility,” Huber added.
The car, in the first leg of its journey, would travel from Pune to some key southern cities that include Bangalore, Cochin, Coimbatore and Chennai.
It will cover Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Jaipur in its second leg before ending the trip in Delhi.
The fuel developed from the plant is devoid of the harmful sulphur element but contains a higher octane number, which fuels the combustion process.
“The project, scheduled for five years, would generate valuable findings with regard to wasteland reclamation, rural employment, income generation, and sustainable mobility in remote areas and reduction in carbon dioxide emission,” the company said in a statement.
“By growing undemanding Jatropha plants in the humid climate of Orissa as well as in the dry region of Gujarat, barren land is to be re-cultivated and provide the people with jobs while the by-products would be marketed to ensure profitability of oil production for the local farmers,” the DaimlerChrysler statement added.
DaimlerChrysler India also exported auto parts worth 72 million euros in 2003, up from 63 million euros in 2002 and expects this to rise to 80 million euros in 2004.
