From biomass to biochar: Ankur Scientific’s 4-decade journey of turning waste into wealth

In 1986, when conversations around climate change, carbon emissions, and the circular economy were far less common than they are now, Vadodara-based B.C. Jain identified potential in agricultural residues, something otherwise considered waste. He founded Ankur Scientific with the simple idea of converting biomass and agricultural waste into usable heat and power. Some 40 years later, that idea has grown into a much larger business spanning waste-to-energy, biochar, and carbon technologies with the company having successfully completed over 1,000 projects across more than 60 countries.

B.C. Jain passed away in 2022, but his vision continues to guide the company. “Today we convert municipal solid waste, agricultural and industrial residues, and sludge into clean energy, useful materials, and carbon-negative solutions through waste-to-energy, biochar, and carbon technologies. The vision has not changed since 1986. What the world discards is a resource, and the right technology can turn it into economic and environmental progress,” said Ankur Jain, Managing Director of Ankur Scientific Energy Technologies Private Limited.

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Trash into treasure

The company’s gasifiers convert suitable biomass, including agricultural and municipal waste, into a fuel gas for heat and power. They also produce biochar, a carbon-rich material made from biomass that can store carbon for long periods. They use their in-house technology and adapt it to the feedstock and the industry, instead of building around a single waste stream. This has helped the company handle more than 60 different feedstocks.

Jain said that the company’s first milestone was developing indigenous gasification technology and gradually scaling it up to process around 1,000 kg of biomass an hour by 2000. “Between 2004 and 2006, we reached 100% producer-gas-based engine power generation. From there, we moved into pyro-gasifiers, biochar generators, and other waste-processing technologies, including the Omni Processor—developed with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation—for faecal sludge management in 2015,” he said.

Ankur Scientific clocked a revenue of Rs 54 crore in FY25, Rs 79.6 crore in FY24 and Rs 90 crore in FY23, according to data from Tracxn. The company is now looking forward towards a planned joint venture with Thermax to develop a pre-commercial facility for green methanol production using biomass-derived syngas, in collaboration with Germany-based C1 Green Chemicals AG.

So far, its projects have helped prevent more than 1.5 million tonnes of CO₂ emissions while converting over a million tonnes of biomass and waste into clean energy, claims Ankur Scientific.

Jain said the market is currently facing three problems: mounting waste, a reliance on fossil fuels, and the demand to cut carbon emissions. “They are linked, and so is the answer. Much of the waste that industries and other sectors generate is still underused, even though it can become something valuable,” he said, adding that Ankur Scientific is closing that gap.

The challenge, therefore, is not just to find ways to reuse waste, but to make the process financially attractive for businesses. Jain said businesses recover value from material they would otherwise pay to dispose of, and they cut their environmental impact along the way. “Our focus is to make that conversion commercially viable so that environmental responsibility and economic value move forward together,” he said.

According to an IMARC report, India’s waste-to-energy market size, valued at $1,557.0 million in 2025, is expected to reach $1,967.3 million by 2034, growing at a CAGR of 2.55%. With sustainable taking the centre stage almost in corporate strategies, the waste-to-energy market offer potential. Other waste-to-energy firms in India include SAEL Ltd, Ramky Enviro Engineers Ltd, etc.

Sanjay Ganjoo, Director General, Indian Federation of Green Energy, said that biomass is used towards a more organised industry with applications across power generation, industrial energy, compressed biogas (CBG), biomass pellets and briquettes and the recovery of energy and useful products from suitable waste. “This evolution reflects the growing importance of energy security, better waste management, circularity, and industrial decarbonisation,” he said.

He added that government initiatives such as the National Bioenergy Program, the SATAT (Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation) Scheme, GOBARdhan (Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resources Dhan), and policies promoting biomass co-firing in coal-based thermal power plants have supported the development of the bioenergy ecosystem.

However, in the early years, the company faced several challenges. The biggest hurdle, Jain said, was getting customers to trust the technology. “We were the first to develop a biomass gasifier that could deliver heat and dual-fuel power from agricultural residues, and customers had to be convinced that indigenous technology could perform in real industrial conditions. Confidence had to be earned through sustained engineering and field experience across different feedstocks,” he said.

Today, the challenge has moved beyond technology. “Feedstock must be available, collected, stored and transported, and each step affects project cost and performance. In newer areas like biochar and carbon removal, the test is building dependable end-use markets and business models that work commercially,” he said.

The industry is also confronted with supply chain, technology, financing, and market issues, said Ganjoo. In many cases, the difficulty is not simply the availability of biomass or waste but ensuring a consistent supply of the right feedstock and converting it into energy or products at a commercially viable cost, he pointed out.