Economic Assessment of the Technology Harvesting Maize Straw for Biogas Production

Abstract

The aim of the study was to determine and analyse the costs of harvesting and storage of maize straw for biogas production. The investigations showed that it was the most economical to harvest maize straw with a self-loading wagon equipped with a cutting system and to store it in a field prism. The cost of this technology amounts to €12.5 per Mg d.m. The cost of maize straw harvest with a field chopper and storage in a flexible silo was the highest, amounts to €126.9 per Mg d.m. The research findings can be used for estimating the profitability of harvesting maize straw for energy production and other industrial purposes.