Biomass Status vis-a-vis Bioenergy Prospects and Options for India

India has a large biomass energy potential if its underutilized resources are used in mo9dernized biofuels and bioenergy conversion systems. India uses about half traditional and half commercial energy sources. However, with a fast-growing population, a relatively slow-growing economy, and few fossil energy resources, the need to use indegenous resources more efficiently is becoming more pressing. Currently, about 400 million tonnes of biomass (fuel wood, crop residues, and cattle dung) is burnt in millions of traditional cooking stoves, especially in the rural sector. The net energy loss could be as much as 5 EJ. Converting only a fraction of this biomass to biogas, a much cleaner and more efficient fuel, could meet the total cooking requirements of the rural sector. The remainder ofthe biomass could be converted for use as producer gas and ethanol. Nearly 15% of about 0.6 million villages are unelectrified. Modular power generation using biomass-fueled producer gas-fired generators could meet the rural needs at less cost than grid extensions. Ethanol is already proven in Brazil and the U.S. as a galoline substitute and extender that mitigates air pollution in urban areas.