Multi-criteria analysis to select sustainable bioenergy from residual biomass in Costa Rica Northern region

Residual biomass from the agro-forestry industry has become an attractive bioenergy resource for developing countries in tropical regions due to its ease and adaptability in the short and medium term. However, these projects must be comprehensively analyzed to select the best alternative that adapts to each location with minimal risk to investors, the government, and the benefited communities. Therefore, this work used a multi-criterial analysis (MCA) to compare and select the best alternative energy source power plant capacity to produce energy in northern Costa Rica. The study compared eight alternatives based on residual biomass (proceeding of four agro-forestry crops) and diesel (current option) sources in four power plant capacities (5, 15, 30, and 50 MW). The MCA considered spatial–technological, economic, and environmental criteria; then, the top three were used in the uncertainty analysis (Monte Carlo simulation and sensitivity test) to recommend the best alternative. The results suggested that bioenergy from residual biomass would be sustainable compared to diesel due to lower supply logistics, affecting a value of energy generation between 10 and 26% lower and a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions between 11 and 21%. The power plant capacity at 15 MW was the most attractive alternative because it had better MCA and uncertainty analysis results. Finally, our results support the possibility of bioenergy based on residual biomass as an alternative to non-renewable energy for tropical regions that allow greater energy security and efficient use of local resources.