The Central American Bank for Economic Integration's (BCIE) Green SMMEs Initiative is funding a feasibility study for a proposed project to generate "clean" energy from pig farm waste, in the process reducing local pollution and mitigating agricultural greenhouse gas emissions.
12 November 2012: The Central American Bank for Economic Integration (BCIE) is partially funding a feasibility study, by the firm BioenergyR4E Choloma, of a project for a power generation plant using manure from pig farms as its fuel.
The agreement for BCIE to provide US$50,000 for the study was signed 12 November 2012 by the BCIE Country Manager for Honduras, Enrique Chinchilla, and the President of Bioenergy R4E Choloma, Mr. Hermann Reichle.
BCIE officials expect the proposed project to generate clean energy by using organic waste from four pig farms located in the municipality of Choloma in the Department of Cortés as an energy source, while in the process reducing pollution in the municipality and mitigating greenhouse gas emissions in the local agricultural sector.
The support for the study is granted through the the BCIE’s Green SMMEs Initiative, a program begun with financial support from the European Union (EU), through its Latin America Investment Facility (LAIF), and the German Development Bank (KfW), to support small-scale investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy among micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMMEs) in Central American countries. The Initiative has US$44.5 million for funding projects, as well as a US$4.5 million program for providing technical assistance to financial institutions, energy audits in MSMEs, studies for renewable energy projects, and efforts to promote awareness of these issues. [BCIE Press Release (in Spanish)]