Biomass power is widely accepted as being an integral part of a low-carbon energy generation system as it offers potential base-load power generation in contrast to variable renewable energy (VRE) such as solar and wind. In recent years, it has been observed that dedicated biomass power plants typically fall into two different categories. One is a model based around a relatively small project size (e.g. 10MW) using "tried and tested" technology (the “cheap and cheerful” option). These projects tend to have relatively low capital and operating costs but operate at relatively low efficiency and with relatively poor availability. The second model involves a larger scale project (e.g. 50-100+MW) using more "cutting edge" technology e.g. reheat steam cycles (the “bells and whistles” option). Capital costs and operating costs are relatively high however the electricity generation efficiency is higher. Using data benchmarked from existing projects in South East Asia, this paper presents a comparison of the two different models in terms of the key technical and financial parameters and the overall performance of the two models from a financial performance perspective such as Internal Rate of Return (IRR) and Debt-Service Coverage Ratio (DSCR). Based on the analysis described in the paper, indicative conclusions on which project type might be more attractive to developers in which type of country are presented.
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