Govt plans biomass power plants using Napier grass from communities this year

[webfact]

Govt plans biomass power plants using Napier grass from communities this year

 

   

UBON RATCHATHANI (NNT) - The government plans to build biomass power plants with the use of Napier grass supplied by local communities this year, in an effort to create jobs and incomes, stimulate the local economy and strengthen national energy security.

 

Energy Minister Sontirat Sontijrawong visited the plant of Ubon Bio Ethanol Co Ltd in Baan Nong Paen village in Nayia district of Ubon Ratchathani province recently.

 

The firm purchases and processes tapioca, produces biomass gas from waste water and produces biomass gas from tapioca and Napier grass for a 5.6 megawatt power plant.

 

The government is looking to encourage farmers to build community-based power plants producing biomass gas from Napier grass to create jobs and incomes, stimulate the local economy and strengthen the national energy security.

 

The energy minister said the biomass power plant in Ubon Ratchathani province will become a model biomass plant for communities elsewhere, able to access Napier grass which can be processed into biomass gas.

 

However, it would depend on the preparedness of respective communities, ready to build one, beginning this year.

 

-- © Copyright NNT 2020-01-06

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[webfact]

Community power plant project to open for registration in Feb

By The Nation

 

Sontirat Sontijirawong

 

The committee tasked with preparing draft regulations for planned projects will speed up their work with completion expected in January ahead of their auctions in February, said Energy Minister Sontirat Sontijirawong.

 

These projects will help stimulate the grassroots economy, especially the community-based power plant scheme.

 

The power plant project will open for registration and auction in February. It will generate a total of 700 MW from private producers at a combined investment of Bt70 billion.

 

“After official opening, investors under the "Quick win" initiative can start plant construction in provinces rich in natural resource for power generation driven by renewables, such as Ubon Ratchathani," Sontrirat said.

 

With 256.9 MW of power generating capacity planned in three southern provinces, the ministry will decide on the type of investment in view of previously-approved projects, such as the Pracharath power plant.

 

The ministry will promote diesel B10 as a main source of energy, in place of diesel B7, as a means of stabilising palm oil prices. Currently, raw palm price stands at Bt6 per kilogram compared to Bt33-34 for crude palm oil per kilogram. In March, it will promote sugarcane and cassava in fuel production through the mix of ethanol and gasohol.

 

After the community-based power plant project, he said, the ministry will turn to promote waste-to-energy plants under Power Development Plan 2018. It will buy 400MW from waste-to-energy community plants and 44MW from waste-to-energy industrial plants. “However, the plan needs extensive study, especially the volume of purchase”.

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/business/30380158?utm_source=homepage&utm_medium=internal_referral

 

-- © Copyright The Nation Thailand 2020-01-06

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[neeray]

This is all great news. A proactive government full of ideas to develop national, clean energy and simultaneously create jobs.

There are some pretty big numbers involved here. Lots of tenders to be let.

.......................

[khunPer]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

The power plant project will open for registration and auction in February. It will generate a total of 700 MW from private producers at a combined investment of Bt70 billion.

That's 100 million baht per MW.

 

For comparison I found the wind generated power has a construction cost of $1,661 per kilowatt (at several sources, probably quoting same 2015-graph), which equals about $1.7 million per MW (1,000 KW), whilst biomass is $1,531 per kilowatt, i.e. $1.5 million per MW.

 

Around $1.6 million per MW equals about 50 million baht, but perhaps average biomass construction cost has doubled in 5 years...????

 

 

Quote

From 2013 to 2015, nearly all forms of utility-scale electrical generation declined, according to a study from the Energy Information Administration.

Hydropower, which had one of the steepest cost declines, now costs an average of $580 per kilowatt. Natural gas ended the survey at $696, with biomass at $1,531, wind at $1,661 and solar at $2,921.

Petroleum liquid plants saw the only construction cost increases in the survey, ending 2015 slightly higher at $1,021 per kilowatt.

Source: Construction Costs for Most Power Generation Types Have Fallen.

[Srikcir]

On 1/6/2020 at 4:41 AM, webfact said:

The government is looking to encourage farmers to build community-based power plants producing biomass gas from Napier grass to create jobs and incomes, stimulate the local economy and strengthen the national energy security.

Organic waste-to-energy plants rely on a stable supply of agri-waste resulting from harvests.

No rainfall, prolonged drought and little or no waste to process.

The government has yet to develop any national or regional anti-drought measures that would assure such predictable power plant "fuel." The local economy isn't going to be stimulated by a plant shutdown if it begins to operate at a loss. Furthermore, there might be a financial trap for farmers investing in such plants that could under worse case scenario lose their farms.