Nicaragua-based firm launches bagasse biomass plant

Ingenio Montelimar, a Nicaragua-based renewable energy firm, officially launched a 38-MW biomass plant in San Rafael del Sur city, according to media reports.

The facility is named ‘Green Power’. It will use bagasse as raw material. Bagasse is the fibrous matter that remains after sugarcane or sorghum stalks are crushed to extract their juice.

The $76-million €66.4m plant will be able to meet 5% of the country's electricity demand.

The minister of Mines and Energy, Salvador Mansell, quoted by media channel El Nuevo Diario, said during the inauguration that with this plant, Nicaragua has now an installed capacity of 1,329 MW.

In a media statement, the firm said: "It's the most efficient investment in biomass (the country) to date, by the use of technology and processes friendly to the environment.”

Earlier this month, the Nicaraguan government announced it will invest more than $10 million in renewable energy projects this year.