Biomass Scorecard, September 2026: 52 Fires So Far, Paddy Buying Opens on 1 October, and an Ethanol Year That Starts Short of Sugar
Punjab logged 52 farm fires by 29 September as the harvest began, and government paddy buying opens on 1 October with a target of 180 lakh tonnes. The next ethanol supply year starts on 1 November, with grain expected to carry more of the load because sugar is too expensive to divert. Here is the month in numbers for anyone who works with crop residue, biogas or biofuel.
Recykal Times Desk·30 Sept 2026·5 min read·7 sources
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Editorial image for “Biomass Scorecard, September 2026: 52 Fires So Far, Paddy Buying Opens on 1 October, and an Ethanol Year That Starts Short of Sugar”, illustrating ethanol.
Our Top 10 round-up covered September's biggest biomass change: a biogas price fixed until 2036. This scorecard looks at the harvest now under way, the paddy and straw that come with it, and the ethanol market that starts its new year in a month.
September in numbers
Indicator
Figure
Punjab farm fires, 2026 season, to 29 Sep
52 reported, 16 confirmed on inspection
Penalties so far
1 FIR and ₹55,000 in environmental compensation imposed
Punjab paddy procurement
Opens 1 October; target 180 lakh tonnes across 1,887 mandis
Credit limit approved for Punjab's procurement
About ₹42,787 crore
Crop residue machines in Punjab
About 1.59 lakh subsidised machines
Punjab biogas plants running
6 plants, about 107 tonnes a day of capacity
Ethanol demand estimate, 2026-27 supply year
1,150 to 1,200 crore litres
FCI rice price for ethanol from 1 November
₹2,390 a quintal, up from ₹2,320
The harvest has started, and so has the fire count
Punjab began monitoring farm fires on 15 September. By 29 September, 52 fires had been reported, with Amritsar accounting for 30 of them. Of the 42 checked so far, 16 were confirmed. Authorities have registered one police case and imposed ₹55,000 in environmental compensation, of which ₹25,000 has been recovered.
Why it matters. Early-season fires are usually few, and the real test comes in late October and November when most paddy is cut. Under a May 2026 direction, the Commission for Air Quality Management has called for stubble burning to be eliminated this season, and its enforcement committee reviewed preparations in September.
Paddy buying opens on 1 October
Government procurement of paddy in Punjab opens on 1 October, with a target of 180 lakh tonnes across 1,887 mandis and a cash credit limit of about ₹42,787 crore approved by the Centre.
Recykal Times analysis: Every tonne of paddy brought to the mandi leaves straw behind in the field. As procurement picks up through October, so does the volume of straw that needs to be baled, stored or sold. For balers and aggregators, mandi arrivals are the best early signal of when straw supply will peak.
Punjab's roadmap and its biogas plants
Punjab's roadmap, reported on 18 September, aims for zero stubble burning by 2030. It lists about 1.59 lakh subsidised machines for managing residue, and plans to cut paddy area by 7 lakh hectares by 2030. Six compressed biogas plants are running in the state with about 107 tonnes a day of capacity, five more are due this financial year, and 46 are in the pipeline.
Recykal Times analysis: Biogas can become a serious buyer of straw, but the plants running now are small against the volume of straw Punjab produces. With a fixed biogas price now in place until 2036, the 46 projects in the pipeline are the ones to watch. Each one that starts running creates a year-round buyer for straw, which balers can plan storage around.
Ethanol: a new year that starts short of sugar
India's ethanol supply year runs from 1 November to 31 October. One industry analysis in September estimated demand for the 2026-27 year at 1,150 to 1,200 crore litres. Last year, 1,048 crore litres were allocated, and cane juice supplied only about 166 crore litres of the roughly 299 crore litres offered.
With sugar prices high, diverting cane to ethanol pays less, so grain is expected to carry more of the load. The Food Corporation of India (FCI) will sell rice to ethanol makers at ₹2,320 a quintal until 31 October and ₹2,390 from 1 November. No oil marketing company tender for the new year had been reported by the end of September.
On blending, standards for petrol with 22% to 30% ethanol were notified in May 2026, but the government said in July that it would not move beyond 20% immediately.
Recykal Times analysis: More grain-based ethanol keeps demand strong for rice and maize, and less cane juice means less molasses-based supply. For the biomass trade, the link is indirect but real. The same farmers and districts that supply grain also produce the straw that biogas plants and kilns need, and their harvest timing drives both markets.
What this means for you
Farmers: Paddy buying opens on 1 October, and fines for burning have already started. Baling and selling straw is safer than burning it this season.
Balers and aggregators: Watch mandi arrivals to time your baling and storage. Straw volume will climb steeply through October.
Biogas developers: With a fixed gas price, the priority is feedstock contracts. Punjab's 46 pipeline projects will compete for the same straw.
Ethanol and grain traders: Expect grain to carry more of the ethanol load in 2026-27. The FCI rice price rises on 1 November.
October watchlist
1 October 2026: Paddy procurement opens in Punjab.
Farm fire counts through October, especially in Amritsar and Tarn Taran.
Oil company ethanol tender for the 2026-27 supply year.
1 November 2026: Ethanol supply year begins, the FCI rice price rises, and brick kilns move to a 30% straw pellet share.
The bottom line
The harvest, the fire season and the ethanol year all peak within the next six weeks. For balers, aggregators and biogas developers, October is the month to secure straw, storage and buyers before the rush.
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