Sustainable development challenges of the biofuel industry in India based on integrated MCDM approach

Abstract Biofuel can become a promising sustainable energy resource in India by substituting conventional fossil fuels. However, the biofuel industry is still in its initial stage due to barriers in technical, economic, social, and regulatory dimensions. In this study, thirty-eight barriers to the sustainable development of biofuels were explored by reviewing the literature and expert opinions. Then, an integrated approach combining “Interpretive Structural Modelling (ISM)” and “Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL)” methodology was employed to establish a mutual relationship between the challenges and simultaneously obtaining the intensity of this interrelationship to identify the most significant ones. Further, these barriers are also clustered using “Matriced Impacts Croises Multiplication Appliquee a un Classement (MICMAC)” analysis. The results of the study reveal that four challenges, i.e., “Lack of governmental support for sustainable supply chain solutions (B31), Lack of subsidies/incentives for creating competition among the producers of bio-energy (B30), Lack of entrepreneurship support (B21) and Lack of biomass supply chain standards (B19)” are the biggest hurdles. The study also presents a few strategies, which can be used as a guiding step by the decision-makers to formulate policies for the effective elimination of the barriers for the sustainable growth of the biofuel industry.