Virendra Singh Rawat / Lucknow
Uttar Pradesh, which is expanding its green energy portfolio, is taking baby steps to ramp up its bioenergy production capacity.
The bioenergy chain will not only address the issue of environmental pollution due to stubble (crop residue) burning, but provide robust income to the farmers.
Under the UP State Bioenergy Policy 2022, the state is targetting production of 1,000 tonnes of compressed biogas per day, 4,000 tonnes of bio-coal (pellets) per day and 2,000 kilolitre biodiesel per day.
“Under the Uttar Pradesh state bioenergy policy 2022, the state has received private investment proposals to the tune of about Rs 45,000 crore,” a government official said.
The policy intends to promote bioenergy enterprises based on agri waste to solve the problem of environmental crisis and loss in fertility of soil due to stubble burning.
Meanwhile, UP New and Renewable Energy Development Agency (UPNEDA) has identified 60 bioenergy projects as viable after vetting.
Of these, seven bioenergy projects with consolidated investment of Rs 325 crore, have been approved by a state level committee headed by UP additional chief secretary Mahesh Kumar Gupta. These projects will come up in Meerut, Muzaffarnagar, Gorakhpur, Hardoi and Bulandshahr districts.
The approved projects include four compressed biogas (CBG) plants, two biodiesel and one bio-coal unit. While the five biogas and bio-coal plants have a combined capacity of more than 90 tonnes per day, the two biodiesel units will produce nearly 204 kilolitres of biodiesel per day.
The bioenergy policy seeks to promote production of CBG, bio-coal and biodiesel in the state by providing substantial incentives, concessions and capital subsidy to investors. The incentives on bioenergy plants are in addition to incentives available under the central schemes.
The state incentives include Rs 75 lakh/tonne to the maximum of Rs 20 crore on setting up CBG plant; incentive of Rs 75,000/tonne to the maximum of Rs 20 crore on setting up of bio-coal plant; and incentive of Rs 3 lakh/kilolitre per day to the maximum of Rs 20 crore on setting up biodiesel plant.
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Besides, the state offers 100 percent exemption on stamp duty and electricity duty, apart from the government land on lease rent of Re 1 per acre per annum for setting up bioenergy industry and storage of feedstock.