Written by Clifford Stanley

BIOMASS energy is energy that is derived from the use of biological sources such as manure, industrial waste such as sugar cane stalk fibre (bagasse) from sugar factories, sawdust from sawmills, rice husk from rice mills and landfill garbage as a source of electrical power.

 Biomass is a renewable energy resource that can be used in similar ways to fossil fuels, and it has been said that of all the other sources of renewable energy, solar power, wind power or hydro power included, it is the cheapest source of renewable energy.

It is clean energy and can substantially reduce dependency on fossil fuels.

Two scientists from India, currently on a visit to Guyana, disclosed yesterday that Guyana has great potential for developing biomass as a source of cheap electrical energy, and can benefit from considerable energy savings if biomass is incorporated into its renewable energy programme.

They disclosed that business such as sawmills, sugar factories and rice mills can use the waste products to generate electricity for their own production purpose, and export the excess power to surrounding communities.
Mr. S.K. Singh at yesterday’s session on biomass

Payback time for the investment in biomass equipment such as gassifierscan can be a matter of months, and the benefits of savings can be enjoyed for a considerable amount of time after.

Dr. G. Persaud and Mr. S.K.Singh have been in Guyana over the past week at the invitation of the Government of Guyana, through the Guyana Energy Authority (GEA) to enliven awareness of businessmen in the rice milling, sawmilling and sugar industry as to the benefits of utilising biomass energy in their operations.

Mr. S.K. Singh addressed a gathering of business people on biomass energy during a two-hour educational programme at the Cara Lodge, Quamina Street, Georgetown yesterday afternoon.

Mr. S.K. Singh said that biomass energy equipment could produce electricity for as low a cost as eight cents per kilowatt hour.

Prime Minister, Sam Hinds, who has responsibility for energy, told the gathering that he has been assured that equipment which could produce biomass electricity from 5 KVA to 5 Mega Watts could be obtained off the shelf with great savings to the user.

He said that he is hoping that with the assistance of the scientists who are here, and with the support of the Government of India, in a very short time there would be a number of installations here utilising agricultural waste for the production of biomass energy .

Chief Executive Officer of the Guyana Energy Agency, Dr. Mahender Persaud, told the gathering that the GEA will be available to assist producers in the rice, sugar and sawmilling sector in arranging linkages between themselves and producers of biomass energy equipment in India, so they can utilise this form of energy for not only savings, but for export of the surplus to communities within their environs.

 

 

 

 

 

Prime Minister Samuel Hinds & others at the Cara Lodge yesterday    

 

Source: http://www.guyanachronicleonline.com/