Catalysing leadership on efficient bagasse processing

This case study examines the potential for high pressure cogeneration (HPC) technology in Pakistan's sugar industry to address electricity shortfalls and reduce operational costs by efficiently processing bagasse.

• Pakistan's sugar industry has a significant potential for electricity generation due to an average annual availability of 4.4 million metric tonnes of bagasse, which could generate 1000 MW of electricity to help mitigate a current national electricity shortfall of 4000MW.
• High pressure cogeneration (HPC) technology is more efficient than conventional low-pressure technology, consuming 46% less bagasse for the same electricity output (66 bar vs 23 bar) and requiring only 5.5 tons of steam to generate 1 MW of electricity, compared to 11 tons for low-pressure systems.
• The adoption of HPC technology in Pakistan is limited, with only three sugar mills having switched. Barriers include high upfront costs, technology risks, a lack of technical skillsets for operation and maintenance, a non-responsive financial sector, and an unconducive regulatory regime.
• Case studies of individual mills show mixed results: Almoiz Sugar Mills initially faced equipment design and fabrication problems leading to the loss of two crop cycles and huge losses, while JDW successfully completed two bagasse-based HPC plants with a total capacity of approximately 53 MW that supply electricity to the national grid.
• Several regulatory and financial initiatives have been introduced to support the sector, including a 2015 upfront tariff for bagasse-based cogeneration for 30 years by the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority, and a State Bank of Pakistan scheme since 2009 that provides up to Rs. 3 billion for single renewable energy projects.

APA

Riaz, A., & Sabir, Q. (2016). Catalysing leadership on efficient bagasse processing. Climate and Development Knowledge Network. http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Case-Study-on-Pakistan-Sugar-Industry.pdf

Chicago

Riaz, Areej, and Qazi Sabir. Catalysing leadership on efficient bagasse processing. Climate and Development Knowledge Network, 2016. http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Case-Study-on-Pakistan-Sugar-Industry.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Riaz |first1=Areej |last2=Sabir |first2=Qazi |title=Catalysing leadership on efficient bagasse processing |publisher=Climate and Development Knowledge Network |date=2016 |url=http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Case-Study-on-Pakistan-Sugar-Industry.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{riaz2016catalysing, author = {Riaz, Areej and Sabir, Qazi}, title = {{Catalysing leadership on efficient bagasse processing}}, institution = {Climate and Development Knowledge Network}, year = {2016}, url = {http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Case-Study-on-Pakistan-Sugar-Industry.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }