Generating Electricity from Biogas of Palm Oil Mill Effluent, Why Not?

Though POME is waste byproduct of palm kernel milling, it can become an energy source when its biogas byproduct is harnessed for electricity production.

The recovery of biogas from POME to produce electricity and reduce greenhouse gas emissions is a demonstrably profitable practice that has been widely adopted across Southeast Asia.

The liquid waste in Crude Palm Oil production process can be utilized not only as animal feedstocks or fertilizers, but also in electricity generation by convert them into biogas.

Biogas power plants that use POME as energy feedstock may give economic benefits for palm oil producers, not only used in the internal process but also by selling the electrical potential to the electricity company.

Implementing POME to biogas renewable energy projects at 742 mills of Indonesia’s could supply enough electricity to meet the needs of approximately 1,800,000 Indonesian households and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 19.3 million metric tons of CO2 equivalent per year.

Additionally, implementing scalable POME-to-biogas technology should increase households’ access to renewable energy and reduce the environmental impact of the palm oil industry while increasing its economic competitiveness.

Biogas produced from palm oil mill effluent could potentially be used to support the state’s power grid as well as for rural electrification project. It would be good as well to achieve the target of 23% of New Renewable Energy of national energy mix by 2025.