A high-tech dairy farm in Bosnia is at the forefront of innovation, utilizing biogas derived from animal waste and silage to generate electricity. With the goal of becoming self-sufficient, the farm is addressing the challenges facing the agricultural sector, particularly the rising cost of energy.
The farm's energy production capabilities are impressive, capable of generating more electricity in a single hour than the average household consumes in a month. While currently operating at 50-60% capacity due to regulatory requirements, once fully operational, the farm will have the capacity to produce 600-kilowatt hours.
This innovative solution comes at a crucial time, as rising prices for fertilizer, food, and energy have become increasingly prevalent as a result of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The idea of converting organic waste, such as cow and chicken feces and corn silage, into biogas on the farm was first conceived almost a decade ago, according to the farm's director, Said Karic.
According to Karic and project leader Mirsad Tursunovic, it is the first of its kind in Bosnia's autonomous Bosniak-Croat Federation. “It was intended to crown the existing processes at the farm,” Karic said at the Sarajevo Milkos dairy industry's farm, which spans 800 hectares of its own and leased land and can house 2,000 high-yielding cattle.
The farm's scheme, which already employs automation and high-tech machinery, is supported by the government and funded by Sarajevo Milkos. “This is a step toward conformity with European standards… and represents an economic model that can be developed to improve the business's economics, despite the fact that primary agriculture production is low profit,” Karic added.
In Bosnia, a significant portion of the country's GDP is derived from energy production. Specifically, it is estimated that around 20% of GDP is generated through this sector. Additionally, Bosnia stands as the sole exporter of electricity in the Balkans region. The majority of the country's electricity, approximately 60%, is generated through coal-fired power plants, with the remaining portion primarily produced through hydropower.
Both of Bosnia's regions, the Bosniak-Croat Federation and the Serb Republic, have committed to increasing the proportion of renewable energy sources used in electricity production by 2030. However, the ongoing energy crisis resulting from the war in Ukraine has hindered progress towards achieving this goal.
