EE-325 Assignment

Bio-mass Energy
Programme in India

Submitted by :
Rupesh Gupta
12 EEB 174
A3EE-24

Waste quantities
As per (December 2007) estimates about 50 million
tonnes of solid waste (1.48 lakh tonnes per day)
and about 6000 million cubic meters of liquid waste
is generated every year by urban population.

Potential
This translates into a potential of Municipal solid
waste (MSW) or conversion of energy over the
next decade is given below. The government aims
to realize the available potential in MSW by 2017.
Year

2012
2017

projected MSW
generation(TPD)

potential for power

generation (MW)

2150003650
304000

5200

Sources
In addition to this a large quantity of solid and liquid
waste is also generated in the industrial sector.
Rapid industrialization has resulted in the generation
of huge quantities of wastes, both solid and liquid in
industrial sectors such as sugar, pulp and paper , fruit
and food processing, sago/starch industry, distilleries,
dairies, tanneries, slaughterhouses and poultries.

Issues
Most of the waste generated finds its way into rivers,
ponds, low lying land, etc., without any treatment,
resulting in odour, pollution of water and air as well
as emission of greenhouse gases like methane and
carbon dioxide.

Issues
Despite requirements for pollution control measures,
these are generally dumped on land or discharged
into water bodies , without adequate treatment.
They thus become a large source of environmental
pollution and health hazard.
This problem can be mitigated through the adoption
of effective waste management systems and waste to
energy conversion technologies.

Solutions
Biomass conversion technologies not only lead to
generation of substantial quantity of decentralized
energy but also reduce the quantity of waste besides
improving the quality of waste to meet the pollution
control standards.
It has been estimated that there is a potential for
recovery of about 1300 MW of energy from
industrial wastes.

Solutions
The estimated potential for recovery of
energy/generation of power from solid and liquid
wastes being generated in various industrial sectors
is expected to increase to about 16 MW by 2012 and
2000 MW by the year 2017.

A waste-to-energy conversion
Plant producing 5MW power and
75 tonnes per day biofertilizer from
municipal Solid Waste of Lucknow city
Source: MNES Annual Report

A High Rate bio-methanation plant

For starch industry waste water at Salem,
Tamil Nadu
Source: MNES Annual Report

Initiatives
Several initiatives have been taken including the
development of high rate Biomethanation and the
National Programme on Energy recovery for urban
and industrial wastes.
39 projects aggregating to abut 59MW have been
installed in the country so far in distilleries, pulp and
paper mills, slaughterhouses, tanneries, starch
industries, sea food processing and oil extraction
industries.
8 projects of about 16 MW are under installation.

Initiatives
India is a predominantly agricultural country.
The potential in agro residues and plantation is
estimated as 16,881 MW out of which 605.80 W has
been realized.
The baggasse-based cogeneration has an estimated
potential of 5000 MW out of which 710.83 MW has
been realized so far.
A total of 95 MW power is being generated from non
baggasse based plants.

Biomethanisation of slaughterhouse
Waste at Al-Kabeer, Medak, AP
Source: MNES Annual Report

Initiatives
India has also launched blended petrol since 2003.
The country currently imports about 70% of its crude
requirements, worth Rs 78000crores per annum.
Blending of ethanol will result in considerable
savings in precious foreign exchange.
Moreover the continuous requirement of ethanol will
help the sustain the demand for the ethanol leading to
higher sugarcane cultivation and increased income to
sugarcane growing farmers.

Initiatives
Jatropha Curcas plantation has been taken up in
different parts of the country. Its plantation has been
carried out along the railways line between Delhi and
Mumbai.
Diesel locomotives are running with 15-20%
blending of bio diesel in the mineral diesel.

Rural problems
Rural people depend mostly upon biomass fuels such
as firewood, animal waste and crop residues for
meeting cooking and heating energy requirements.
These fuels are burnt in an inefficient manner in
traditional chulhas, causing not only economic loss
to nation but also posing serious health problems to
people due to smoke.

Rural problems
Not only is the present level of consumption of
firewood considered unsustainable, but the burning
of animal waste and agricultural residues deprives
our soils of much need organic matter, adversely
affecting soil health and agricultural productivity.

Solutions to rural problems

Technologies have been developed indigenously to
produce more efficient and clean fuel from biomass,
through thermal gasification, wood and crop residue
is converted to producer gas which can be burnt more
efficiently. A total of 86.53 MW biogasifiers have
been installed in the country so far.

Solutions to rural problems

Cattle dung and other organic wastes can be used
through a biogas plant to obtain both fuel as well as
fertilizer. Out of a target of 120Lakh biogas plants,
39.40 lakh family size cow dung/agro waste and
3902 community/institutional, night-soil based
plants have been installed in the country.

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