Bioenergy from crop residues: A regional analysis for heat and electricity applications in Ghana

The global campaign to minimise greenhouse gas emissions and reduce fossil fuel dependency has led to the consideration of crop residue as feedstock for various bioenergy technologies. In this study, the extent to which various crop residues in the ten administrative regions of Ghana can contribute to the specific heat and electricity demands of each region was assessed. The conversion of residues from 22 crops to briquettes, biomethane and bioethanol-based electricity were examined using resource modelling to determine their potential contribution to wood fuels, Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) and electricity demand respectively. The results indicate that, the Eastern Region generated the highest amount of crop residues at 2.3 Mt, mainly from cassava stalks while the Greater Accra Region generated the least amount of crop residue from the ten regions at 52.3 kt. The conversion of selected crop residues to briquettes would contribute to 53.6% of the national wood fuel demand, with Eastern and Brong Ahafo Regions recording the highest individual contributions of 27.7 and 20.5% respectively. Biomethane would contribute to 11.7% of LPG demand in all the ten regions. Electricity generated from bioethanol would supplement 91.2% of the national electricity demand. Overall, the prospects are highest for the production of electricity from bioethanol produced from crop residue to support regional energy demands.