Viabilidade técnico-econômica de geração de energia elétrica na entressafra de uma usina de açúcar e álcool

Abstract

The state of Alagoas was once one of the largest sugar producers in Brazil and over the years has been losing space to other agricultural areas such as the states of Minas Gerais and Goiás. The number of mills in activities in the state has been decreasing over the years, from 24 units in 2008 to 17 in 2017.It is necessary to look for local alternatives to diagnose and change this situation. This study aims at analyzing a plant that does not sell electricity to the market and find ways to export a solution, either to the free market or to use in its irrigating system. For this, a survey was made of both the agricultural area and the industrial area, in order to draw a broader diagnosis of the evaluated plant. As price is a decisive factor in the investment decision to sell surplus energy, a survey of the structure of price regulation was carried out on the factors that affect it. It is concluded that it is possible to generate electricity for sale, provided that this generation can be made in the off season, using the bagasse generated in the harvest and the purchase and installation of a condensation turbine exclusively to generate electric energy, taking advantage of the existing pipeline and boiler infrastructure, as well as the generators already installed. In order for this situation to be implemented, a strong effort is needed to recover sugarcane production to values above 1 million tons, values already reached in previous years. This measure will not only enable the generation of energy for sale, but will also enable the sale of sugar and ethanol in larger volumes and increasing the revenue of the production units.