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Economic Viability and Environmental Impact of Centralized Biogas Plants in Croatia

Biogas plants are an established technology and their benefit is well recognized but they are still underutilized in Croatia, mostly due to the specific state of its agricultural sector. They can reduce the environmental impact of a farm, help with manure management and can also be an extra source of income to the owner. The biggest problem for Croatian farms is their small size and because of that, the supply of the plant with the necessary substrate. The utilization of centralized biogas plants is a possible solution to this problem. There are several factors that can influence the economic viability of a biogas plant ranging from its size to the modes of transport used to supply it with raw material. Because of this, the design of the plant and its operation has to be carefully planned in order to guaranty its economic viability. The goal of this work is to analyze the impact of the transportation distances on the economic viability of biogas plants and the resulting reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Three hypothetical centralized biogas plants with installed electrical powers of 250 kW, 500 kW and 1 MW have been analyzed. Different transportation distances and different transport efficiencies have been taken into account.

biogas; renewable energy; feasibility; CO2 emissions

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