After failed attempts, BBMP revives plan on energy from waste
BENGALURU: Though there has been no progress on the agreements on waste-to-energy (WtE) plants signed by BBMP with two international companies due to local protests and land issues, there is still huge interest from abroad in the business of producing energy from waste.
The BBMP now plans to incorporate WtE plants at its facilities housing compost plants in the seven villages of Kannahalli, Seegehalli, Lingadeeranahalli, Doddabidarakallu, Chikkanagamangala, Mavallipura and Kudlu. The plants altogether convert 2,200 metric tonnes (MT) of mixed waste into compost and reduced derived fuel (dry waste) at present.
Speaking to Express, Sarfaraz Khan, Joint Commissioner (Solid Waste Management), BBMP, said, “Companies from Israel, the US, Dubai, Japan and Europe have conveyed their interest in setting up WtE plants in the city.”
The BBMP will be calling for tenders within a month to take the projects forward, he said. Elaborating on the energy the plants could generate if they become functional, M R Venkatesh, Engineer-in-Chief, said, “The production capacity ranges between 8MW and 16 MW per day, depending on the capacity of the plant.”
Agreements not translated into action
The BBMP had signed agreeements with two international firms in the past — Switzerland-based Satarem Enterprises Private Ltd (in September 2013) and the Netherland-based Nexus Novus (May 2016) — for energy generation from waste. Satarem was supposed to set up a plant at Gorur village (between Magadi and Kunigal) to generate power from 1,000 MT of waste per day while the plant proposed by Novus at Bellahalli in Thanisandra was meant to generate energy from 600 MT of waste per day.
Agreements were also signed with the India-based Essel MSW Group in August 2015 for setting up a 500 MT plant at Giddenahalli in Yelahanka and Organic Waste India for a 1,000 MT plant at Kannur in Bellahalli in August 2009.
Local protests against setting up a waste plant due to the stench that it could generate ensured the plants remained non-starters. In the case of Novus, the government had provided land and it ended in litigation. “We have now provided them alternative land and the project will start shortly,” the Joint Commissioner added.
“In the case of the proposed WtE plants at composting units, they already exist. The companies will only have to invest in the equipment to generate energy which will range between `60 crore and `70 crore,” he said.
The reduced derived fuel, sold to cement companies, have high calorie value and will be the component used to generate power, Venkatesh said.
Asked to explain the keen interest from international firms, Sarfaraz Khan said, “This is big business. The energy generated would be sold to those requiring them. The contract would also be a long-term one, like 15 to 20 years.”