Factsheet: Carbon Credits from Bioelectricity

Sugarcane bioelectricity supplies about 3% of Brazil’s current electricity needs. Experts expect that proportion to increase to nearly 18% by 2020/21, thanks to the spread of mechanized harvesting techniques that preserve additional plant matter to use as fuel in more-efficient generators. Such growth means renewable sugarcane will supply Brazil with more than 15,000 megawatts average (MW average) of energy later this decade that are neutral in greenhouse gas emissions. Carbon neutrality and greenhouse gases reduction explain why bioelectricity is eligible for Certified Emissions Reductions (CER) credits under the Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). Brazil is one of the world leader in using the CDM program to finance low-carbon projects. Electricity generation from bagasse (the dry, fibrous residue left after sugarcane is crushed) accounts for 5% of all renewable energy projects. see ACM0006 Consolidated methodology for electricity and heat generation from biomass residues.