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English Issue<br />
Biogas Journal<br />
| <strong>Autumn</strong>_<strong>2017</strong><br />
However, it differs to Europe in that the search for appropriate<br />
finance is more difficult because the technology<br />
is still unfamiliar. He believes the existence of<br />
drivers is very important, irrespective of whether these<br />
are to do with waste or environmental problems, the<br />
need to replace fossil fuels, etc. along with convincing<br />
and gaining support from key persons within the companies.<br />
According to Linnenberg, when the technical<br />
and economic conditions are right, it will be possible to<br />
adapt and implement the technology in Latin America<br />
as well.<br />
According to GIZ, important factors for the implementation<br />
of this project were the vision and commitment<br />
of the managers of both companies, the technical<br />
support from ICE and AD Solutions and the technical<br />
capability of the plant operators. The Central America<br />
region has a great potential for biogas but investors are<br />
sometimes cautious because there is no commercial<br />
or technical representation of the technology to support<br />
the projects locally. German companies interested<br />
in this market should offer post-sales services and<br />
engage local providers for certain aspects. Likewise,<br />
there are still opportunities for innovation in using new<br />
feedstocks such as harvest waste from banana, coffee<br />
and in particular pineapple.<br />
The support and work of a team composed of different<br />
stakeholders – public, private, national and international<br />
– made this biogas project possible. The project<br />
is already well-known in the region for its technical<br />
characteristics as well as its innovative business model,<br />
which could be replicated in other countries. In a<br />
region where governments can only support renewable<br />
energies in a very limited way, it is necessary for new<br />
stakeholders to be brought in.<br />
Authors<br />
Giannina Bontempo<br />
International Project Manager<br />
German Biogas Association<br />
Phone: 00 49 81 61 98 46 60<br />
e-mail: info@biogas.org<br />
In collaboration with<br />
Ana Lucía Alfaro<br />
4E Programme Coordinator<br />
Deutsche Gesellschaft für International Zusammenarbeit<br />
(GIZ) GmbH<br />
Carolina Hernández<br />
Biogas Programme Coordinator, Grupo ICE<br />
Marco Sánchez<br />
Plant Operator, Sustratos de la Ribera S.A.<br />
Carsten Linnenberg<br />
General Manager, AD Solutions GmbH<br />
Construction works of<br />
the gas storage.<br />
Photo: AD Solutions UG<br />
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