Bagasse energy cogeneration potential in the Zimbabwean sugar industry

The cogeneration of steam and electricity has become the norm in the sugarcane industry worldwide. This process has been taken further to a stage where sugar companies can export a substantial amount of energy to the grid. Mauritius and Reunion Islands have implemented state of the art technology in bagasse energy cogeneration. It is on this basis that the potential for cogeneration in Zimbabwe’s sugar industry is being examined. The findings indicate that it is technically feasible to implement such a project. A full economic and financial feasibility study would still need to be done. Two plants of 105 MW each can be put in place, providing about 517 GWh of clean bagasse firm power to the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority