Lusakert Biogas Plant (LBP) is a biogas plant in

Nor Geghi Nor Geghi ( hy, Նոր Գեղի) is a major village in the Kotayk Province of Armenia, located around 22 km north of the capital Yerevan, near the town of Nor Hachen. As of the 2011 census, the population of the village is 5,319. Archaeolog ...

, about north of

Yerevan Yerevan ( , , hy, Երևան , sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Y ...

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...

. It generates

electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described ...

by combustion of biogas produced from

animal manure Manure is organic matter that is used as organic fertilizer in agriculture. Most manure consists of animal feces; other sources include compost and green manure. Manures contribute to the fertility of soil by adding organic matter and nutrie ...

of the Lusakert Pedigree Poultry Plant. The LBP started its operations in October 2008.

History

The project was proposed and carried out by the Max Concern (Armenia) and Vekst Foundation (Norway). The construction of the plant started in August 2007 and was finished a year later. In the sphere of clean development, Lusakert Biogas Plant was the first in Armenia. It was registered in UN in September 2006, in the framework of Kyoto Protocol. Since the LBP implies future potential

renewable energy Renewable energy is energy that is collected from renewable resources that are naturally replenished on a human timescale. It includes sources such as sunlight, wind, the movement of water, and geothermal heat. Although most renewable energy ...

projects, it is significant for the development of renewable energy industry in Armenia. Lusakert Biogas Plant was awarded National Energy Globe Award Armenia (overall winner) in 2007

Technical description

The Lusaker Biogas Plant generates heat and electricity from biogas produced from poultry manure of the Lusakert Pedigree Poultry Plant. For production of biogas, the liquid manure is processed in an anaerobic digesters of at temperature of . There is an option to build the second digester. The LBP was considered to produce of biogas with a

methane Methane ( , ) is a chemical compound with the chemical formula (one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms). It is a group-14 hydride, the simplest alkane, and the main constituent of natural gas. The relative abundance of methane on Eart ...

(CH₄) content of 70%. Remains of manure are used for production of 75,000 tonnes of organic

fertilizer A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from ...

per year. After removing

sulfuric acid Sulfuric acid (American spelling and the preferred IUPAC name) or sulphuric acid ( Commonwealth spelling), known in antiquity as oil of vitriol, is a mineral acid composed of the elements sulfur, oxygen and hydrogen, with the molecular formu ...

from gas, it is used for heat and power generation. The LBP has installed electric capacity of 0.85 MW and it is able to generate 7 GWh of electricity annually. The average capacity that Lusakert Biogas Plant runs with is 50-60%. The electricity produced at LBP is sold at 40 drams (about 7.5 cents) per kilowatt. In 2014, the plant did not generate electricity due to economic difficulties of the poultry plant which resulted in low amounts of wastes. The project duration is 21 years.

Impact

It was planned that Lusakert Biogas Plant reduces

greenhouse gas emissions Greenhouse gas emissions from human activities strengthen the greenhouse effect, contributing to climate change. Most is carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels: coal, oil, and natural gas. The largest emitters include coal in China and lar ...

to the atmosphere 63,000 tonnes per year of equivalent. In 2008–2011, the plant decreased almost 37000 tons of emissions to the atmosphere. It reduces local pollution of ground and water as well. LBP helps the local inhabitants to get rid of the disgusting smell of poultry emissions.Lusakert biogas plant. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.energy-engineering.net/index.php/articles-2/10-news-events/72-presentation-lusakert-biogas-plant.html

Shareholders

The largest shareholders of Lusakert Biogas Plant are Max Concern (the owner of Lusakert Pedigree Poultry Plant - 58%), Vekst Foundation (Norway - 16%), the Danish Development Fund and Bigadan (Denmark) - both 13%.

References

{{coord missing, Armenia Biofuel power stations in Armenia