How Haiti Can Securitize Reliable Domestic Energy Production, Commodity Exports, and Socio-Economic Progress from Sugarcane and Its Biomass Residuals

Abstract

Bioenergy if implemented properly can mitigate the negative effects of fuelwood and charcoal consumption, which include adverse impacts on the surrounding environment, global warming potential and decreases in human health. The solution proposed in this study highlights sugarcane, an energetic energy crop. The crop has a capacity to provide commodity exports like sugar and bioenergy for 1st and 2nd generation ethanol production. Although, second generation ethanol production techniques like the biogeochemical conversion of lingo-cellulose from sugarcane bagasse is not commercial viable currently, but improved hydrolysis, enzymatic saccharification and pentose fermentation methods being tested in Brazil can ultimately lead to commercial viability before 2015. Mature lingo-cellulosic processes such as (ammonia fiber expansion (AFEX) pre-treatment and consolidated bioprocessing (CBP)) would in the future produce ethanol that is more profitable and better at mitigating GHG emissions than current traditional Rankine-cycle systems. Currently, Haiti has 240MW of installed electrical capacity and a capacity factor of 30. Net generation in the country is estimated at 620 GW. The metropolitan region of Port-au-Prince has a totaled installed capacity of 171.87 MW. Additionally, 50% of the population resides in the over-populated capital. Line losses are numerous throughout the country's grid. Technical line loss accounts for 18% of total losses. The majority of losses are non-technical losses and/or illegal connections which account for 31.02-38.59% of total line losses. Haiti has thousands of operational small mills which produce beverage-grade ethanol for rum production. With one major part of the necessary infrastructure already in existence, enhanced ethanol production and electricity co-generation at mill sites could be easily integrated. In 1980, Haiti's sugarcane production was estimated at 3 million tons per annum, currently production is approximated to be at 1 million tons per annum. The plan proposed here is based on data from a sugarcane biorefinery in Brazil. The study proposes two options; one that is electricity production focused and the other which is ethanol production focused. The electricity option biorefinery produces 130kWh/ton of sugarcane and 91L of ethanol/ton of sugarcane. The ethanol option biorefinery produces 50kWh/ton of sugarcane and 124L of ethanol/ton of sugarcane. Considering that Haiti produces 1 million tons of sugarcane per year, the highest estimated capacity of ethanol produced would be 124 million Liters and the electrical capacity would be approximated at 50MW. At the current sugarcane production rate, Haiti can increase installed electrical generating capacity by 20%, increase ethanol production and successively lessen the use charcoal and fuelwood for cooking. If sugarcane production returned to 1980 levels the values would triple and enable to country to forge a sustainable pathway to the future based on sustainable agricultural practices and local clean bioenergy production.