Status of SADC Bioenergy Potential and GHG reduction
Loughborough University
U.K
Prof F.D.Yamba
CEEEZ
Centre for
Energy, Environment and
Engineering Zambia Limited
• Background
• Ethanol Production Potential
• Cogeneration Potential
• Electricity Generation from Agric Crops Potential
 GHG Reduction Potential
Background
Energy crops
 Africa has a wide variety of crops suitable for bioenergy production due to
its suitable climatic and soil conditions.
 The large areas of currently unutilised arable land places Africa in a strategic
position as a continent with enormous potential for biofuels production.
 The most common bioenergy crop for biodiesel production in Sub-Saharan
Africa is Jatropha, mainly because it is non edible, drought tolerant and
suitable for cultivation in almost all countries.
 Other potential feedstocks include coconut, oil palm, sunflower, soy bean,
animal fat, and castor oil.
 The main resources for bioethanol in Africa on one hand, include sugar
cane, sweet sorghum, sorghum (grain), cassava, maize for first generation
feedstock , and
Background
 Cellulosic energy crops such as grasses, miscanthus, short rotation shrubs,
straw and bamboo as second generation feedstock for both bioethanol and
biodiesel
 Biodiesel from cellulosic biomass can be produced through a number of
processes which include, Pyrolysis, gasification,
 Bioethanol from cellulosic biomass is produced through hydrolysis using
special enzymes to convert cellulose to sugars which is then fermented
Sugarcane
 The sugar cane plant is one of the world’s most cost effective and
diversified renewable energy resource, offering many alternatives for
production of food, feed, fibre, and energy.
 Sugar cane is widely grown in most SADC countries.
 The traditional focus in the SADC sugar industry has been the production
of sugar only.
Background
 However, changing international sugar market prices, adverse weather
patterns, and recently EU sugar reforms have prompted the need for
co-production of sugar, ethanol and electricity, simultaneously.
 A recent study has shown the potential to produce ethanol and
electricity as co-products to sugar as summarised in the next two slides
Ethanol Production Potentials
Country
From C-molasses
(Million
litres)
% share
of
gasoline
(energy
basis)
With Zero Sugar Exports
% share
of
gasoline
(volume
basis)
potential
(Million
litres)
% share of
gasoline
(energy
basis)
Maximal Ethanol
% share of
gasoline
(volume
basis)
(Million
litres)
% share of
gasoline
(energy basis)
% share of
gasoline
(volume
basis)
Malawi
29.2
10.6
16.4
44.2
16.0
24.8
249.7
90.4
140.0
Mauritius
79.9
19.6
30.4
726.1
178.5
276.5
683.3
168.0
260.2
Mozambiq
ue
28.2
14.1
21.9
163.1
81.8
126.6
241.2
120.9
187.2
316.5
1.1
1.7
2133.9
7.4
11.5
2707.6
9.4
14.6
Swaziland
61.4
23.4
36.2
564.6
214.9
332.8
525.7
200.1
309.9
Zambia
27.7
5.2
8.1
160.0
30.2
46.8
236.6
44.7
69.2
Zimbabwe
63.0
5.1
7.9
390.5
31.8
49.3
538.9
43.9
68.0
605.8
1.9
3.0
4182.4
13.2
20.5
5183.0
16.4
25.4
South
Africa
Total
BIOENERGY
Co-generation Potential
• Two main strategies for selling surplus electricity from
a sugar factory are possible.
• The first option can be to sell to local off-grid
customers, such as local industries or rural electricity
cooperatives, thereby providing electrical services
without the costs that accompany grid connections.
• The second option is to sell surplus electricity to
established utilities or distributors, as an independent
power producer (IPP).
BIOENERGY
co-generation Potential
BIOENERGY
Co-generation Potential
• This requires appropriate national policies that allow IPPs
to generate and supply the public network.
• Cogeneration potentials were determined for selected
countries based on sugar factory data, and by assuming
constant growth scenarios.
• Through the CEST route, there is currently a technical
potential of 10.6 TWh of electricity from this renewable
energy resource, which is readily available as part of the
SADC sugar industry.
BIOENERGY
co-generation Potential
BIOENERGY
co-generation Potential
Combined Cycle with Integrated Atmospheric Gasifier
Electricity generation from agriculture crops
 Agriculture crop wastes, most of which go to waste after harvest offer a
good potential for possible electricity production, in particular in rural
areas of SADC.
 As part of this assignment, a detailed analysis was undertaken to assess
technical electricity production potential
through use of agriculture
wastes from major agriculture crops (which have feasible wastes for use)
grown in SADC to include; wheat, sugarcane, sorghum, soya beans, seed
cotton, and maize.
 Electricity produced through combustion of agriculture wastes and steam
produced expanding on steam turbines and steam reciprocating engines
was determined through knowledge of volume of production of the major
crops, harvest residue and recoverability ratios, and energy content.
BIOENERGY
Agriculture Wastes
 Agriculture crop wastes, most of which go to waste
after harvest, offer a good potential for possible
electricity production, in particular rural areas of
SADC.
BIOENERGY
AGRICULTURE WASTES
BIOENERGY
Agriculture Wastes
• A possible technical potential of 11,528 TWh
can be realized from this source.
• The technical potential is based on the
assumption that all the wastes remaining
after recoverability is taken into account.
BIOENERGY
Agriculture Wastes
• Below is the technical electricity production potential by country.
The highest electricity production potential is coming from South
Africa followed by Swaziland, Mauritius, and Zimbabwe.
GHG Reduction Potential
 If the scenarios for electricity production are
implemented, GHG mitigation potential from
cogeneration through the CEST route is 10.5 million CO2
equiv and from electricity generation from agriculture
crops is 11.5 million CO2 equiv .
 This combined potential represents 7% of total GHG
emissions for the baseline scenario for the year 2020.
Conclusions
 It is clear that bioenergy for both biofuel and electricity
production can contribute moderately to GHG reduction
for the SADC region:
 However, for this to happen requires innovative policies
to include fiscal incentives such as
 Corporate Tax Incentives and Grant Programs.
 Leasing Programs and Loan Programs
 Performance-Based Incentives such as feed in tariff
 Innovative financing mechanism
Thank you so much