E25 rollout: Policymakers need to think of existing cars, says Mercedes-Benz India MD & CEO
The industry needs a heads-up on E25 so that it can plan and prepare itself for the future, says Mercedes-Benz India MD & CEO Santosh Iyer.
- Jul 7, 2026,
- Updated Jul 7, 2026 5:07 PM IST
As the government weighs higher baseline ethanol blend of 25% by the end of this decade, Mercedes-Benz India managing director and CEO Santosh Iyer has said that policymakers need to think about existing cars that are already there in the market.
“We need a heads-up so that we can plan and prepare ourselves for the future. One thing that has come out of this current situation is that policymakers need to think of the existing cars that are already there in the market and the fuel that they need,” Iyer said in a media roundtable as the German luxury carmaker announced its sales figures for the first half of 2026.
“The transition to E20 did not happen directly from E0. It happened via E10 and E15,” said Iyer, adding that the ethanol issue has cropped up after "some elements increased fuel adulteration at select outlets and that was blamed on ethanol blending as well."
“It’s a combination of factors that led to this issue cropping up. As far as Mercedes-Benz is concerned, the cars that we are selling since 2020 are materially compliant with E20,” noted Iyer.
On Mercedes-Benz preparedness for E25, Iyer said that the automaker has some E25 cars in its global portfolio. “We have E25 cars in our portfolio. We will have to do some engineering work on others,” he said.
But the company will take a decision on bringing more E25 vehicles once there is policy clarity.
“We will have to wait for the policy to decide because it will depend on whether the technology is available off the shelf. If we have to develop something, we have to see the volumes and a business case,” he said.
For E20, the government had given sufficient time, said Iyer. “Even if the government decides to go for E25, there will be sufficient time given to OEMs after due consultations,” he added.
In June, Mercedes-Benz introduced its first-ever plug-in hybrid in India: the new S Class, which is already E25 compliant.
Mercedes-Benz announced its best-ever sales of 9,768 new cars in the January-June 2026 period, up 9% year-on-year compared to the same period last year. The company also achieved its best-ever Q2 sales performance retailing 4,637 new Mercedes-Benz in the April to June 2026 period, growing by 10%.
As the government weighs higher baseline ethanol blend of 25% by the end of this decade, Mercedes-Benz India managing director and CEO Santosh Iyer has said that policymakers need to think about existing cars that are already there in the market.
“We need a heads-up so that we can plan and prepare ourselves for the future. One thing that has come out of this current situation is that policymakers need to think of the existing cars that are already there in the market and the fuel that they need,” Iyer said in a media roundtable as the German luxury carmaker announced its sales figures for the first half of 2026.
“The transition to E20 did not happen directly from E0. It happened via E10 and E15,” said Iyer, adding that the ethanol issue has cropped up after "some elements increased fuel adulteration at select outlets and that was blamed on ethanol blending as well."
“It’s a combination of factors that led to this issue cropping up. As far as Mercedes-Benz is concerned, the cars that we are selling since 2020 are materially compliant with E20,” noted Iyer.
On Mercedes-Benz preparedness for E25, Iyer said that the automaker has some E25 cars in its global portfolio. “We have E25 cars in our portfolio. We will have to do some engineering work on others,” he said.
But the company will take a decision on bringing more E25 vehicles once there is policy clarity.
“We will have to wait for the policy to decide because it will depend on whether the technology is available off the shelf. If we have to develop something, we have to see the volumes and a business case,” he said.
For E20, the government had given sufficient time, said Iyer. “Even if the government decides to go for E25, there will be sufficient time given to OEMs after due consultations,” he added.
In June, Mercedes-Benz introduced its first-ever plug-in hybrid in India: the new S Class, which is already E25 compliant.
Mercedes-Benz announced its best-ever sales of 9,768 new cars in the January-June 2026 period, up 9% year-on-year compared to the same period last year. The company also achieved its best-ever Q2 sales performance retailing 4,637 new Mercedes-Benz in the April to June 2026 period, growing by 10%.