Spatial assessment of the techno-economic potential of bioelectricity production from sugarcane straw

Abstract

The techno-economic potential of bioelectricity from sugarcane straw is highly affected by the availability and distribution of straw, the scale of the sugarcane mill and its proximity to the grid connection. All these parameters present high spatial variation. This study aims to spatially assess the techno-economic potential of bioelectricity from straw of the mills from São Paulo state (Brazil). It is assumed that all 174 mills are equipped with an adjacent power plant, and that all straw within the collection radius of the mill can potentially be used in the adjacent power plant. The straw costs are assessed making use of the spatial information on straw availability and the collection radius of the mills. The bioelectricity costs are calculated taking into account the scale efficiency, investments and operational costs, and cost of connecting to the nearest transmission infrastructure. The bioelectricity costs range between 68 and 266 US$.MWh−1 across mills. The mills with high bioelectricity potential and low costs are generally large mills located in traditional sugarcane areas characterized by suitable agro-ecological conditions. Assuming a cut-off price of 80 US$.MWh−1, the techno-economic potential of bioelectricity of straw in Sao Paulo is 14.2 TWh, which equals 10% of total electricity consumption of the state.