Power-from-waste project launched in Delhi

In a little over a year from now, some homes in the capital will be lit up with power generated from household waste. The Delhi government today launched a project to generate clean power from waste.

In a little over a year from now, some homes in the capital will be lit up with power generated from household waste. The Delhi government on Saturday launched a project to generate clean power from waste.

HT Image

The project will be run in the public-private partnership mode by the government and Jindal Ecopolis in Okhla. It will cost Rs.200 crore and will generate 16 MW of power by the end of 2011.

The company has signed an agreement to sell electricity to Delhi at Rs.2.45 per unit.

Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, who laid the foundation stone of the project, said it will not only generate clean power but will also help dispose off more than 25 percent of the 7,000 tonnes of municipal solid waste generated daily.

"The consumption habits of modern consumers are causing a huge waste problem. Garbage disposal is a formidable challenge being faced by Delhi. Its three landfill sites are saturated and hardly any land is available in the city to open a new landfill site. The project will overcome the problems of scarcity of landfill land and power being faced in the city," said Dikshit.

The project is being developed as an integrated waste management system with a power plant. It is registered under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) for earning carbon credits.

For the project, the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) have both agreed to make available 1,950 tonnes of solid waste per day free of cost.

"The plant will convert 1,950 tonnes of waste -- equal to 200 truck-loads into 16 MW power. The project is first of its kind and, on completion, will be the largest plant of its kind operational in India. It will address both bio-degradable and non-bio-degradable waste," Dikshit said.

The plant will also have an effluent treatment unit.

Dikshit said another such plant will be setup by Delhi International Airport Limited at Ghazipur. This will produce around 8 MW power from 1,300 tonnes of waste.