Effect of the Colombian Renewable Energy Law on the Levelized Cost of a Substitute Gaseous Fuel Produced from MSW Gasification

Abstract

Colombian municipal solid waste (MSW) production trends indicate that sanitary emergencies could occur in the largest cities of the country by 2030 because of the end of their landfills’ useful life. In this work, the energy recovery from different MSW through the updraft plasma gasification process to produce syngas as a substitute gaseous fuel was assessed from an economic viewpoint. The study was carried out using the results of an implemented model under a thermochemical approach using Aspen Plus. The economic assessment was conducted using the levelized cost of syngas production (LCOS), which was regarded as an economic indicator that considers tax incentives in the context of the Colombian renewable energy regulations (Law 715 of 2014). The combination between operational conditions (air flow and plasma temperature) allowed finding the maximum efficiency by means of a sensitivity analysis. The maximum efficiency ranged from 79,22 to 83,46%, highlighting the flexibility of the plasma gasification process to treat MSW. The lowest levelized syngas production cost reached with tax incentives varied from 13,19 to 22,95 ¢US$/kWh. Therefore, a waste disposal charge was proposed to make these projects feasible, which must range between 11,25 and 23,56 ¢US$/kWh (123-259 US$/t)