Gas demand
In developing countries, the household energy demand is greatly influenced by eating and
cooking habits. Gas demand for cooking is low in regions where the diet consists of
vegetables, meat, milk products and small grain. The gas demand is higher in cultures with
complicated cuisine and where whole grain maize or beans are part of the daily nourishment.
As a rule of thumb, the cooking energy demand is higher for well-to-do families than for poor
families. Energy demand is also a function of the energy price. Expensive or scarce energy is
used more carefully than energy that is effluent and free of charge.
The gas consumption for cooking per person lies between 300 and 900 liter per day, the gas
consumption per 5-member family for 2 cooked meals between 1500 and 2400 liter per day.
In industrialized countries, biogas almost always replaces existing energy sources like
electricity, diesel or other gases. The objective of biogas production may be less to satisfy a
certain demand, but to produce biogas as much and as cheap as possible. Whatever surplus
is available can be fed as electricity into the grid. The gas demand is market-driven, while in
developing countries, the gas demand is needs-driven.
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