Powering agriculture through renewable energy

1. Powering Agriculture with
renewable energy
By Abhinav Bhaskar
* Most of the information is taken from poweringag.org

2. Challenges faced by Agriculture and power sector
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization projects that by 2050 global food
production will need to increase 70 percent over 2005–2007 levels to meet the demand
of a growing world population expected to reach 9.6 billion people.
Agri-food supply chain accounts for 30% of the world’s energy consumption as reported
by the International Renewable Energy Agency.
Achieving universal energy access
De-coupling from fossil fuels
Producing and consuming energy more efficiently
Minimizing costly waste
Preserving natural resource base

3. Energy demand for agriculture (small holders and enterprise
)
Energy for transport
Energy for production
Energy for Irrigation
Energy for storage
Energy for post processing of food items like drying , peeling etc

5. Types of energy used in a farm
Electrical energy: suitable for powering water pumps, milling machines, fridges
Mechanical energy: suitable for production and processing e.g. for harvesters or
tractors. Water supply,
Thermal energy: suitable for different value-adding processes e.g. cooking,
drying, cooling (thermally driven cooling systems)

6. Agricultural energy use in India as percentage of total energy
use
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
4
4.5
1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010
Agricultural energy use

7. Use of energy sources and income levels
End use Household income
Low Medium High
Household
Cooking Wood, residues, dung Wood, charcoal, dung, kerosene, biogas
Wood, charcoal, coal, kerosene,
biogas, LPG, electricity
Lighting Candles and kerosene Candles, kerosene, gasoline Kerosene, electricity, gasoline
Space heating Wood, residues, dung Wood, charcoal, dung Wood, charcoal, dung, coal
Other appliances Batteries (if any) Electricity, batteries Electricity, batteries
Agriculture
Tilling Human Animal Animal, gasoline, diesel
Irrigation Human Animal, wind pumps Diesel, electricity
Post-harvest processing Human, sun drying Animal, water mills, sun drying Diesel, electricity, solar drying
Rural Industry
Mechanical tools Human Human, animal Human, animal, diesel, electricity
Process heat Wood, residues Coal, charcoal, wood, residues
Coal, charcoal, wood, kerosene,
residues
Transport
Motive power Human Human, animal Human, animal, diesel, gasoline

8. Case studies on use of
renewable energy in
agriculture

9. Cold storages

10. Biogas powered milk chiilers : Simgas , Tnazania
The emerging dairy industry in East Africa affects the livelihoods of more than 2
million smallholder farmers
While demand is expected to more than double in coming years, only 15 percent
of milk produced reaches the formal market and 30–50 percent is not delivered
to milk collection centers.
The reason being that raw milk is not cooled at farm level because 85 percent of
rural East Africa lacks access to a (reliable) power grid.
SimGas is developing the first off-grid, biogas-powered milk chiller at farm level
to help milk supply meet demand: the SimGas Biogas Milk Chiller (BMC).

11. Technology
BMC runs on biogas, produced with an on-farm biogas digester.
Amount of manure produced by a cow creates enough biogas to refrigerate her
own milk, while leaving enough biogas to cook a meal for the household.
Empower small dairy farmers to guide their own development; the BMC can
greatly improve the income of small dairy farmers, help supply to meet demand,
help farmers to access the formal dairy market, and contribute to improved
nutrition.
Video link to the innovation : http://poweringag.org/news-events/video/biogas-
milk-chilling-increase-productivity-incomes-dairy-farmers-simgas

12. Solar powered chilling with thermal backup-Promethean,
India
Promethean Power Systems designs and manufactures refrigeration systems
coupled to their thermal batteries for agricultural commercial refrigeration
applications in off-grid and partially electrified areas of developing countries
Promethean is working in partnership with the Hatsun Argo—India’s largest
private dairy company, and Orb Energy—a leading solar energy system provider in
India.
In India, $10 billion worth of perishable foods are wasted annually because of
unreliable cold-chain supply networks.
Major obstacle in setting up cold chain networks is the lack of reliable electricity to
run refrigeration systems in villages and farming areas. Diesel generators are often
used to provide electricity for milk chilling, a non-ideal solution with high
operating costs and negative environmental impact

13. Technology
Thermal energy battery pack that charges on intermittent power sources such as
solar power and/or a few hours of grid electricity.
Dairy processors can collect raw milk from remote dairy farmers and keep it cold
in a rapid milk cooler, reducing the time that milk is unchilled by 75 percent.
Promethean will design and deploy the refrigeration systems in collaboration
with India’s largest private dairy and one of India’s largest solar installers.
Video link : http://poweringag.org/news-events/video/making-thermal-battery-
makes-milk-safer-promethean-power

14. Other solution providers
Sundazer
Rebound technologies
Ecozen
TESSOL
Clique solar
TERI

15. Offgrid power

16. Off grid power with rice husk and Solar PV- Husk power
systems
Husk Power Systems is a rural empowerment enterprise. It focuses on inclusive
rural development on the backbone of electric power.
Creates a self-sustaining ecosystem in the villages it serves, enabling economic
development along with environmental protection, physical well-being and
strengthening of the rural communities.
Further reading :
http://www.huskpowersystems.com/innerPage.php?pageT=Community%20Impa
ct&page_id=81

17. Technology
Husk Power will install a hybrid solution that combines a biomass gasification
system with a solar PV system. The biomass plant uses a proprietary downdraft
gasification technology that converts abundant agricultural residue into
electricity.
Agricultural uses that will be powered include irrigation pumps, agro-processing
mills, and drying and heating processes. The biomass plant converts abundant
agricultural residue, such as maize cobs, rice husks, coffee husks, and cotton
stalks, into electricity.

18. Renewable Microgrids for Off-Grid Fish Hatcheries and Surrounding
Communities-IDE , Bangladesh
International Development Enterprises (iDE) has over 30 years’ experience in
designing and delivering market based anti-poverty programs.
Implemented in partnership with Renewable World—a UK-based charity tackling
poverty using renewable energy.
Off-grid fish hatcheries in Bangladesh, and their surrounding communities, rely
extensively on diesel and kerosene to provide electricity needed to pump water
and provide light.
The households around hatcheries typically rear fish in small ponds, using
fingerlings from the hatchery for part of the year.

19. The proposed solution will replace diesel generation with a micro-grid powered
by economically viable renewable sources
The system will power hatchery water pumping activities and provide household-
level renewable power through an innovative metering technology. The mobile
metering and billing system will allow users to pay for their electricity using
mobile money, either pre- or post-usage.
Video link :http://poweringag.org/news-events/video/renewable-microgrids-
grid-fish-hatcheries-surrounding-communities-ide-Bangladesh

20. Irrigation

21. Low-Cost Pay-Per-Use Irrigation Using Solar Trolley Systems- Claro
systems , India
Claro Energy provides off-grid solar power pumping solutions to power-deficient
regions in India
In India, the availability of irrigation water is dependent on monsoon patterns or
the availability of power to operate ground water pumps.
Many villages lack access to electricity. Given this lack of electricity, diesel pumps
are often the most reliable means to pump the water that is used for irrigation.
The use of diesel fuel has many drawbacks, including environmental pollution, as
well as ever-increasing costs which have a negative impact on farmers’ economic
prosperity.

22. Claro energy offers a pay-per-use irrigation service that uses a portable solar
pump.
The portable design will provide affordable, convenient, and on-demand
irrigation
The service will meet the needs of a wide range of farmers who do not own
pumps, with no upfront capital costs incurred. The farmer will call a toll-free line,
pre-pay, and schedule irrigation service at his field.
Video link : http://poweringag.org/news-events/video/low-cost-pay-use-
irrigation-using-solar-trolley-systems-claro

23. A Hydroponic Green Farming Initiative- Eco consult , Jordan
Jordan is considered to be one of the ten most water-scarce countries in the
world.
As water becomes scarcer, its availability for agriculture is expected to decrease.
Hydroponic technology, an intensive form of agriculture, uses much less water
than conventional farming and offers an excellent opportunity for farmers to
increase their income while reducing their water use. Although farmers have
expressed their interest in this new technology, its application in Jordan is still
limited.

24. ECO Consult has developed an integrated model of hydroponic and photovoltaic
farming to compete with conventional greenhouse technology and drip irrigation
systems.
To make the technology attractive to large-scale commercial farms, ECO Consult
will retrofit a multi-span greenhouse with advanced hydroponic technologies and
photovoltaic panels to generate enough power to operate the lighting, pumping,
and air moderation systems.
Video link : http://poweringag.org/news-events/video/laith-al-waked-eco-
consult-winning-2013-award

25. Food Processing

26. Solar Agro-Processing Power Stations-Village infrastructure angels
Many small, rural villages and towns are off grid, with limited or no access to
reliable sources of electricity.
Agro-processing is a productive end use of electricity for which a large gap
currently exists. Small villages typically do not have access to a diesel mill for crop
processing, and must rely on manual processing, or travel long distances to use a
mill.

27. VIA plans to install solar mills in villages in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea,
Philippines, and Vanuatu.
These mills will deliver services to up to 10,000 households. Small mills will be
installed, with an appropriate capacity for the village, through a microfinancing
program.
The mills will be used to process staple crops, such as rice, corn, and cassava, that
require processing before eating, and make up the majority of the diet of rural
villagers.
Video link :http://poweringag.org/news-events/video/solar-agro-processing-
power-stations-village-infrastructure-angels

28. Solar air drying – Various case studies
Drying is an important form of food preservation that is often carried out at farm level
right after harvest, or especially with highly perishable crops, at peak harvest time when
local markets are saturated.
Open-air or unimproved drying :Food is exposed to the sun and wind by placing it in
trays, on racks, or on the ground. Advantage of drying products directly open-air is that
almost no costs for fuel and appliances have to be spent by the farmer. However, the
dried products are often of lower quality due to varying temperature levels and
contamination of the products with dust, vermin’s and leafs.
70 per cent of agricultural products spoil during the traditional process of open-air
drying, especially in tropical and subtropical regions [http://www.innotech-
ing.de/Innotech/english/Processing.html].

29. Solar /Biomass Dryer

30. Solar air drying
Initial investment is required but no expenditure is incurred on fuels.
Heats air by collecting solar infrared radiation
The air is circulated in the drying chamber which removes moisture from the agricultural
produce.
Keeps the food free from dust, insect and rains
Typical payback time for the dryer is 2-3 years
Initial investment depends upon the size of the unit . Typically a 50 Kg capacity unit with
forced convection can cost INR 50000
Box type solar air dryers are available at cheaper prices
[http://www.cazri.res.in/itmu/pdf/Solar%20dryer%20for%20vegetables%20and%20fruits
.pdf]

31. Project examples : Coffee processing with solar dryers in Peru
Picture: Drying within a solar dryer protects the
yield against spoiling by rain or wind and animals.
(Juan Carlos Quiroz, GIZ EnDev Peru)
The tent out of the protective plastic film
increases the drying process extremly. (Juan
Carlos Quiroz, GIZ EnDev Peru)

32. Drying peaches with solar air dryer in Bolivia
Further information about the project is
available at :
http://www.produse.org/imglib/downloads/en
ergy_sources/PRODUSE-Factsheet-Bolivia.pdf
Solar air tunnel dryer developed in India by
CAZRI. More details about the project can be
found here :
http://www.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/
fsn/docs/Local_Tunnel_Solar_Drier.pdf

33. Drying chilli peppers in Peru

34. Way forward
Mapping energy needs of smallholders and agri-food chains.
Appropriate delivery models for low-cost technology and services specific to
smallholder needs and context
Linking ‘productive uses’ with sustainable resource management
Addressing bottlenecks to take-up new technologies or farming practices (capacity,
finance, maintenance and repair services, market access, land rights)
Promoting energy literacy among farmer organisations

35. Resources
http://agtech.partneringforinnovation.org/welcome : The AgTechXChange is the
premier community for advancing agricultural technologies for smallholder
farmers
https://www.giz.de/expertise/html/18089.html :Sustainable Energy for Food –
Powering Agriculture
Poweringag.org : An Energy Grand Challenge for Development seeks to identify
and support new and sustainable approaches to accelerate the development and
deployment of clean energy solutions for increasing agriculture productivity
and/or value in developing countries.