Currently, each day, Ninh Hoa Sugar Joint Stock Company processes 3,000 tons of sugar cane without using grid power. The entire electricity needs are met by the thermal electric unit with the capacity of 6 MW, the fuel for boiler is bagasse. From Dec 2010, the company installed one more bagasse generator with the capacity of 3 MW.

The entire power output of this generator can meet the electricity needs of 5,000 households and is sold to Electricity of Khanh Hoa. This year's sugar cane crop, it has been estimated that the company shall produce 8 million kWh of commercial electricity. Some sugar mills have also been selling electricity produced from bagasse, such as Gia Lai Cane Sugar - Thermo-electricity Joint Stock Company, Lam Son Sugar JSC (Thanh Hoa), Cam Ranh sugar mill (Khanh Hoa), Tay Ninh Sugar Bourbon JSC.

According to the Vietnam Sugar Association, electricity produced from bagasse is a renewable energy resource which has much potential. Sources of bagasse available in the dry season, used to generate electricity this season, will meet the substantial demand for power this season, reduce the pressure for hydro power plants which are lacking water. Bagasse power plants are safe, can save fossil energy resources, located near rural area, convenient for supplying power for this area. With modern technologies, 100 kWh of electricity can be produced from each ton of sugar cane.

Also according to the Vietnam Sugar Association, the negotiation of power purchase contract between the bagasse electricity producers and EVN is very difficult and time-consuming. Since EVN only buys electricity from sugar mills with a price of no more than VND900/kWh, sugar mills only invest in inexpensive equipment and obsolete technologies to produce electricity, efficiency of the use of bagasse is not high. .. Bagasse power plants in Soc Trang, Gia Lai can only produce up to 50 kWh of electricity from each ton of sugarcane.

By Minh Duc