After solar and wind, waste-to-energy projects begin getting greenlit
Waste-to-energy projects are now getting green light, following in footsteps of solar and win: Following a number of high profile investments last year in solar and wind energy projects, waste-to-energy (WtE) projects appear to be the next hot investment in alternative energy, with a number of projects getting greenlit. First of, an OTMT-LafargeHolcim consortium is finalizing approvals for upgrading the EGP 200 mn Giza recycling factory to produce refuse-derived fuel (RDF) with an eye to begin work y in 1Q2018, sources tell Al Borsa. The factory is expected to produce between 85k and 90k tonnes of refuse per month. The consortium will begin using RDF to generate energy once the Electricity Ministry announces its waste-to-energy feed-in tariff, the sources say. Earlier this month, news reports claimed that the electricity and environment ministries had agreed to set the feed-in tariff for WtE projects at EGP 1.30 per kWh for energy produced from agricultural waste and EGP 1.60 per kWh for that produced from solid waste. The two companies had signed an agreement back in 2015 to cooperate on RDF projects, in which they plan on investing EGP 600 mn.
Meanwhile, Energy group Empower has signed contracts for the development of two 1 MW WtE plants in New Salhiya with initial investments of up to EGP 143 mn, CEO Hatem El Gamal tells Al Mal. Construction is set to start in 3Q2018, once Empower finalizes designs and plans that are being drafted alongside a German partner, which El Gamal did not name. The plant is scheduled to begin production by the end of 1Q2019 and will sell power to the North Delta Electricity Distribution Company at a feed-in tariff of EGP 1.02 per kWh for 20 years.