Biomass has always been an important energy source for the country considering the benefits it offers. It is renewable, widely available, carbon-neutral and has the potential to provide significant employment in the rural areas. Biomass is also capable of providing firm energy. About 32% of the total primary energy use in the country is still derived from biomass and more than 70% of the country’s population depends upon it for its energy needs.
Biomass power generation in India is an industry that attracts investments of over Rs.600 crores every year, generating more than 5000 million units of electricity and yearly employment of more than 10 million man-days in the rural areas. For efficient utilization of biomass, bagasse based cogeneration in sugar mills and biomass power generation have been taken up under biomass power and cogeneration programme.
The current availability of biomass in India is estimated at about 500 millions metric tones per year. Studies sponsored by the Ministry has estimated surplus biomass availability at about 120 – 150 million metric tones per annum covering agricultural and forestry residues corresponding to a potential of about 18,000 MW. This apart, about 5000 MW additional power could be generated through bagasse based cogeneration in the country’s 550 Sugar mills, if these sugar mills were to adopt technically and economically optimal levels of cogeneration for extracting power from the bagasse produced by them.
