The first large scale biogas plant using beef feedlot could make a larger impact to South Africa’s renewable energy than advancing technology.
Independent power producer (IPP) Lesedi Biogas Project (LBP) is planning to build one of the world’s largest open-air feedlot manure-to-power plants outside Johannesburg. Such plants use the anaerobic fermentation to produce a methane rich gas which can be used to produce electricity or burn for heat.
The plant will be situated at the Karan Beef feedlot, which will supply the manure to the LBP. This would initially amount to 110,000 tons per year of manure, which would allow the production of 3.8 MW of base-load power reaching 6.2 MW of peak power.