Two energy plants built to convert municipal and commercial waste into electricity to power homes are on the cusp of being operational, following lengthy delays.
Two energy plants built to convert municipal and commercial waste into electricity to power homes are on the cusp of being fully operational, following lengthy delays
Acciona’s $700 million Kwinana Energy Recovery plant last month fired its boilers on gas for the first time and is close to firing on waste energy.
And the John Laing-Masdar-led $511 million East Rockingham Waste-to-Energy plant has signaled its intention to be operational by December 30 this year.
A note in the City of Cockburn’s July council agenda revealed the local government planned to make its first domestic waste delivery to East Rockingham on September 24, ahead of plant commissioning in December.
Both plants have signed on Sandy Ridge waste facility operator Tellus to manage air pollution residue from the sites, with Acciona striking its deal this week.
“We’re excited about the opportunity for Kwinana Energy Recovery to supply renewable low carbon electricity for the residents of Perth, and that we can play a role in enabling this industry to safely start up and scale up, Tellus chief executive Nate Smith said.
“We believe we have the best facility and the best sustainability practices to enable the growth of this important sector.
“Our capacity to deal with (air pollution control residue) at Sandy Ridge should hopefully mean more plants can come to market much more quickly and be accepted by the community, who’ll benefit from renewable low carbon energy in the grid.”
Tellus has signaled its air pollution control capability at Sandy Ridge would allow more waste-to-energy plants to come online quickly.
Kwinana Energy Recovery Plant general manager Scott Reynolds said the deal was an important step toward commercial operations.
The KER will produce enough energy to power more than 50,000 homes and will divert about 460,000 tonnes of landfill each year from Canning Vale’s Resource Recovery Group and the local governments of Kwinana, Armadale, Gosnells, Mandurah, South Perth, Murray, Serpentine-Jarrahdale, and Waroona.
East Rockingham’s facility will use 330,000 tonnes of waste a year from 12 neighbouring councils to power 36,000 homes and part of Talison’s Greenbushes lithium mine.
Veolia Group will operate both facilities.
The news heralds the final months of a complex development pathway which has seen both projects hampered by disputes and delays.
Acciona bought out project owners Macquarie Capital and Dutch Infrastructure Fund in March following a legal dispute in which the now-owner of the facility unsuccessfully argued COVID-19 was a force majeure event.
And East Rockingham’s backers are in the midst of a federal court row with contractors Acciona and Hitachi over a 2023 site lockout, and alleged unpaid bonds.
The lockout matter is due back in court in August.
