IN THE KITCHEN: A woman preparing a meal using Musisi’s briquettes produced from waste materials
By Gerald Tenywa
NECESSITY is the mother of invention, the saying goes. This certainly applies to Abasi Kazibwe Musisi. An investor in Nateete on Masaka Road, Musisi has overcome choking energy bills by turning waste into fuel.
After a decade of research and consultation with Dr. Moses Musaazi of Makerere University’s faculty of technology, Musisi has come to love waste because he knows it can be turned into briquettes.
Although his small-scale factory, Kampala Jellitone Suppliers, is better known for producing roasted coffee, popularly known as Nguvu, Musisi has come up with a new product for cooking that has triple advantages. His technology helps to turn waste into wealth, saves money and provides an alternative for charcoal and firewood.
“This has helped me to reduce the energy cost by half,” says Musisi. “The briquettes are also cleaner. The technology reduces the felling of trees for charcoal. While environmentalists have been discussing the dangers of rampant tree cutting, I have come up with a practical solution.”
Previously, his company was relying on gas. But after having adopted the new technology, Shell had to come and collect their gas cylinders.
“I tried out all kinds of energy sources – electricity, waste oil and charcoal, but gas was cheaper,” says Musisi. That was until he discovered bio-mass. “The briquettes are the cheapest form of energy. They will help many enterprises save money and thrive.”
Awarded Musisi won international accolades for his innovation. Last month, in London, he received the Ashden Award and a cheque for 20,000 pounds from Prince Charles of Wales.
He intends to use the money to invest in new technology that should double his production of briquettes in the next two years.
Kampala Jellitone Suppliers is currently producing 130 tonnes of briquettes per month. It supplies Nakawa and Kyambogo universities as well as Mary Stuart Hall at Makerere University.
He is also making arrangements to sell his briquettes to Mukono Christian University.
In addition, his company supplies about 30 other institutions including schools, hospitals and restaurants.
“The briquettes are likely to make real business because the biggest challenge for many urban residents, institutions and enterprises is the skyrocketing cost of energy,” he says.
His initiative is the first of its kind. The waste is compressed and compacted, as a result less energy gets lost.
“The briquettes we make at Nateete provide more energy than the charcoal briquettes commonly available on the market,” he explains.
About 70% of the energy is lost during conversion into charcoal briquettes. “What people utilise in the charcoal briquettes is only 30% of the original total biomass energy. With the Nateete briquettes, the energy is kept intact.”
Sources of waste Musisi turns several kinds of waste into fuel. The ‘raw materials’ for his factory include residues of rice, coffee husks, empty groundnut shells and saw dust.
“We have been collecting huge piles of waste from across the country,” he explains. He gets his raw materials free of charge because most farmers are happy to get rid of their waste.
Iganga and Hoima districts are his main suppliers. Farmers and dealers in agricultural products in those areas tend to set fire to the residues of rice or coffee because they have no use for them.
To them, it is a way of removing the waste which has been a burden. But to Musisi, the waste is a source of unlimited wealth. His production of briquettes, which is earning him sh42m a month, is now rivaling his coffee business.
Energy efficient stoves However, Musisi’s briquettes need a special, energy efficient stove. Because the briquettes release a lot of energy, there is need to create space between the saucepan and the briquettes to allow for ample combustion.
“Once there is ample space to allow in air for combustion, you will not see smoke and a lot of energy will be released for cooking,” Musisi says.
He is currently working on his own, affordable type of domestic stove which, once tested and cleared, he wants to put on the market together with his briquettes.
“The stove needs to be made of strong metal and lined with concrete material between the metallic bodies in order to withstand the enormous amount of heat,” he explains.
Contrary to traditional stoves, Musisi’s stove will not require to remove the saucepan to put in briquettes. It will have a slot where the briquettes are pushed into.
Musisi’s story shows that it is possible to make money and protect the environment at the same time.
It also shows that innovative ideas and determination can change the world and contribute to reducing global warming.
“The major value of these awards is that they demonstrate what is possible, not only for small scale projects, but what is achievable for the whole world,” said Prince Charles of Wales, speaking at the Ashden Awards ceremony on June 11.
FACT FILE Process of making briquettes
• Break the waste manually into smaller particles
• Dry the particles in the sun or artificially, using machines
• Mix the rice husks with coffee husks (blending)
• Compress with a machine
• Let it cool
• Weigh and pack Prices
• 1kg goes for sh320
• A sack of 40kg goes for sh12,800
• A big stove (for institutions) goes for between sh600,000 and 1.6m
• Stoves that use firewood can be modified to accommodate the briquettes
Abasi Kazibwe Musisi can be contacted on: 077/2 409 405 and 041/4 270887
