Pilot bio-diesel project set to go commercial

Guyana could become the next South American country blazing the agro-energy trail – albeit on a smaller scale – as a pilot bio-diesel project is set to go commercial.

Guyana’s neighbour, Brazil, is already using ethanol, derived from sugar cane, in its transport sector and analysts say the country is set to become energy secure.

Brazil is also projecting ethanol exports to grow to US$1.3B by 2010 from US$600M in 2005, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The Institute of Applied Science and Technology (IAST), under the stewardship of Dr. Suresh Narine over the last 18 months has successfully moved a bio-diesel project from the laboratory to motor vehicles.

During February, 20 vehicles utilized 1,000 gallons of bio-diesel from IAST. The vehicles came from government and non-governmental organizations, including the Agriculture Ministry, the Guyana Forestry Commission, the National Agricultural Research Institute (NARI), the Canadian High Commission, the Canadian Inter-national Development Agency (CIDA), the Poor Rural Commun-ities Support Project and private individuals.

IAST, located on the University of Guyana Turkeyen Campus, at a briefing yesterday announced that Cabinet is reviewing several proposals from investors to use the bio-diesel technology to produce bio-diesel on a wider commercial scale.

In an interview, Dr Narine told Stabroek News that Cabinet has before it several proposals from potential bio-diesel investors seeking to increase the feed stock, namely the ingredients used to make bio-diesel, such as palm oil, coconut, soy and Jatropha (physic nut). Investors from Barbados and the US have indicated an interest while Zimbabwe, Liberia and Papua New Guinea have approached the IAST to build similar bio-diesel plants there.

The IAST Turkeyen plant has the capacity to produce seventy-five 45-gallon drums of bio-diesel in an eight-hour shift. Currently the plant has only one shift with two workers. Stabroek News was told that there is a shortage of feed stock which impedes the expansion at the plant.

According to Dr Narine, the aim is to have bio-diesel plants close to the estates producing the feed stock so as to reduce transportation costs. For example, at the palm oil estate at Wauna in Region One, owned by Agri-Solutions Technologies, some 300-400 barrels of palm oil is processed monthly into bio-diesel. But the capacity at this plant can be increased to 1,200-1,500 barrels working three shifts; thereby enabling it to provide bio-diesel on a larger commercial scale. Currently the bio-diesel produced fulfils the energy needs for Wauna and is also sold to residents. IAST built the Wauna plant in 10 days and staffed the facility with two workers for the one eight-hour shift. Dr. Narine did not disclose the cost of the Wauna plant, citing investor confidentiality.

It was noted that Hope Estate on the East Coast, traditionally known for its coconut production, is ideal for a bio-diesel plant to cater for energy needs on the coast.

Nevertheless, IAST through private partnerships has been able to produce bio-diesel from waste vegetables, palm oil, fish oil and coconut oil. Among the private partners are Banks DIH, MACORP, Royal Castle, Popeyes and NP Chicken along with the Wauna investors.

Agro-energy policy

Over the next year, once the feed stock can be increased, IAST is projecting that within five years bio-diesel will replace 15%-20% of fossil fuels.

“This is ambitious but I think it is achievable,” Agriculture Minister Robert Persaud said in his address.

Minister Persaud affirmed the government’s support for value-added projects like bio-diesel and proclaimed that bio-diesel or agro-energy “gives us the sense of energy security.”

IAST, the Agriculture Ministry and NARI are collaborating with the Guyana Energy Agency (GEA) to develop a draft agro-energy policy, stated the minister. He declared that agro-energy is identified as an area with strong growth potential.

“We are seeing that there is tremendous foreign investment interest from the US and Brazil, particularly in the area of ethanol production. Our country should be prepared to harness opportunities and develop our full capacity in agro-energy.” Minister Persaud also said that the government is committed to reviving the coconut industry on the coast. Speaking of the IAST bio-diesel plant at Turkeyen, Dr. Narine noted that, “this is not a commercial operation,” it is only a testing location. In this light, he told Stabroek News that the oil is utilized by the government agencies, non-governmental and private entities as a promotional partnership and as such the diesel is sold at cost price with a small mark-up that goes toward the operation of the IAST plant.

Plant cost

So what will it cost to acquire one of these plants?

The cost of building a plant the size of the IAST Turkeyen facility is between US$7,000-US$10,000. As for its own plant, Stabroek News was told that a number of recycled items were used, in addition to the $1.2M spent on the plant. Dr. Narine said that for commercial operations the plant has a 30% per annum return on investment.

Dr. Narine, who holds a Ph.D. in physics and food science and is a professor at Alberta University in Canada, holding a research chair on the Natural Sciences and Engine-ering Research Council of Canada is currently on sabbatical from the university.

Head of the GEA, Joseph O’Lall, told the gathering that the agency is looking forward to all forms of renewable energy.

“We believe that energy is the sector that propels an economy upwards.”

The function of the GEA according to O’Lall was making affordable fuel available.

Benefits of bio-diesel

Some of the benefits of bio-diesel are bio-degradability and non-toxicity (less toxic than table salt and dissolves as sugar); high octane value (better ignition performance); lubricity (low viscosities); low emissions (reduces CO2 and improves combustion); renewability (bio-diesel has a net energy balance in excess of 300%); zero-sulphur rating (free of sulphur); oxidative and bacteriological stability (made from oils with high degree of unsaturation); nitrogen oxide emissions (the emissions of nitrogen oxides from increased bio-diesel usage climbs slightly as the percentage of bio-diesel increases) and energy content (energy content of bio-diesel is about 5% lower on a per volume basis than petroleum).