The southern province of Hau Giang has been chosen as a model to devise a
master plan for biomass energy by the German development agency GIZ,
considering its abundant source of solid farming wastes.
Hau
Giang relies solely on agriculture for economic growth with 200,000ha of
rice and 12,000ha of sugarcane, generating tens of thousands of tonnes
of straws and bagasse – key materials for producing power.
At a
workshop to launch the work on the master plan in Hau Giang on October
29, Director of the New and Renewable Energy Department, an arm of the
Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT), Pham Trong Thuc said the plan
should be completed by February next year.
The plan will
assess the potential of the existing biomass, outline the rule to use
this source of energy and consider possible impacts on greenhouse gas
emission, he said.
During the workshop, technical experts from
GIZ presented an overview of the Vietnam – Germany renewable energy
development project and the role of biomass in Vietnam’s sustainable
development strategy.
Nguyen Duc Cuong, Director of the Centre
for Renewable Energy and Clean Development Mechanism under the
Institute of Energy, said biomass reserves in Vietnam are estimated at
150 million tonnes a year, equivalent to 50 million tonnes of crude oil.
Besides bagasse and rice husk, all kinds of fiber and waste from
agricultural and forestry activities after harvest could be used as fuel
for electricity generation.
The country is also seeking to develop other sources of renewable energy, such as bio-gas and waste energy.-VNA