Why Novonesis sees India bio-energy as an enzyme demand story

India's push into bio-energy is pulling demand for industrial enzymes, and Novonesis is one of the companies positioned to supply them. The Danish bio-solutions firm, formed in 2024 from the merger of Novozymes and Chr. Hansen, sees its India business growing at a double-digit clip, regional president Krishna Mohan Puvvada said.

Enzymes are the hidden lever in biofuel economics. They break down biomass into fermentable sugars. The efficiency of that conversion directly determines whether a litre of ethanol costs ₹50 or ₹65. As India scales its ethanol blending target – the government wants 20% blending by 2025-26 – the volume of enzymes consumed per litre of fuel rises, not just the number of litres. That is the structural demand story Novonesis is riding.

Puvvada said the company has invested roughly ₹4,000 crore in its Indian operations so far, with another ₹2,500-3,000 crore committed under a memorandum of understanding signed with Maharashtra earlier this year. Its Indian facilities in Patalganga and Wada manufacture juice enzymes, probiotics and vitamin K2, and export to global markets. About a tenth of Novonesis' global workforce, including R&D staff, is based in India.

Bio-ethanol is the most visible opportunity. The company sees biogas, biodiesel and other renewable fuels as an under-penetrated market with more room to expand, Puvvada said. The broader bio-economy is also pulling demand from food processing, animal nutrition and bio-fertilisers.

The probiotics segment is another growth leg. As Indian incomes rise and awareness of preventive health grows, demand for dietary supplements and nutrition products is accelerating, Puvvada said. Novonesis supplies probiotics used in infant formula, dairy processing, bread making, cheese production and plant-based foods.

The read-through for the sector is straightforward. Companies that supply the biological inputs to India's energy and food processing chains – enzymes, cultures, probiotics – benefit from two compounding trends: policy-driven volume growth in biofuels, and income-driven premiumisation in nutrition. The risk is execution. Novonesis' India investment cycle is long and capital-intensive. The payback depends on the government maintaining its ethanol blending timeline. Any policy slippage would push the demand curve right.

For now, the numbers back the narrative. Double-digit revenue growth, a large committed capex, and a product set that sits at the intersection of energy security and health-conscious consumption. That is a combination most industrial chemical suppliers would envy.