Barriers to broaden the electricity production from biomass and biogas in Brazil

Abstract

Paper aims: The research aims to identify the main barriers to scaling up the energy production expansion systems from biogas and biomass in Brazil. Originality: This article aggregates information and different perceptions from a systemic view for bioelectricity production from biomass. It brings to the fore the discussion of bioenergy production from other types of biomass, which encompass a wide range of actors in the production chain. Research method: We adopted a qualitative approach by applying semi-structured interviews with 19 experts from 15 institutions considering various biomass and biogas power generation segments. Main findings: This paper identifies five barrier categories that restrain or affect the country’s broad electricity production from biomass and biogas: circumstantial, cultural, technical, and include other uses of biogas and biomethane. The financial and cultural barriers are the most mentioned by the experts. Financial difficulties of the plants, sector conservatism, issues in the electricity sector, and lack of knowledge limit the potential and interest in developing new projects. Implications for theory and practice: The results contribute to the development of sectoral public policies as it brings up non-explicit information and reveals broad perspectives aimed at integrating the themes of biogas and biomass. Also, the research adds to the debate on the analysis boundaries of this theme and can support future empirical studies in developing countries that seek to expand renewable sources to power generation from biomass.