|
The project is
an 18 MW biomass waste-to-energy plant
to be located adjacent to the Belize
Sugar Industries (BSI) sugar mill in
Orange Walk, Belize. The plant will be
owned and operated by e prime (Belize)
for the purposes of 1) generating
electrical power for sale to BEL and
orange processors, and 2) producing
steam and electricity for in-house use
and future sugar refining at BSI's
facility. The BSI sugar mill processes
sugar cane into refined sugar and
molasses using sugar cane obtained
solely from the farmers in the immediate
area of the mill.
Under the proposed project, sugar cane
waste (bagasse) from the BSI mill will
be the primary fuel for the power plant,
providing nearly 50% of the annual fuel
requirements. (The mill generates
bagasse in quantities large enough to
supply 8 MW on an annual basis.) The
fuel supply will be supplemented with
citrus wastes supplied by orange
processing plants owned and operated by
the Citrus Company of Belize and Belize
Food Products. The plants, which produce
frozen orange concentrate for shipment
to the United States and Europe, are
located within 1 mile of each other in
the Stann Creek Province of Belize.
Between them, the plants produce 60,000
tons of waste every month enough to
generate 6 MW of electricity on an
annual basis or 10 MW during the
processing season.
The plant is expected to operate for a
minimum of 6000 hours per year,
producing approximately 18 MW net for
sale to BEL. Electricity will be
generated through the efficient
combustion of the biomass waste, which
has an average moisture content of
approximately 48 percent. The proposed
boiler will generate steam which will
expand through a multi-stage turbine,
condensing under vacuum and driving an
18 MW net generator. Electricity will be
sent to and from the plant via a new 115
kv transmission line which is
interconnected with the existing BEL
transmission system.
The proposed project will help reduce
the power supply deficit in Belize,
balance the regional Belizean load,
increase the economic efficiency of one
of the country's principal export
industries, and utilize biomass wastes
which are often incinerated in open
piles, disposed of in nearby rivers, or
dumped in low-lying areas.
|
