Dong pioneers waste plant

Dong Energy is to build the first commercial-scale waste-to-energy plant using enzymes to generate biogas from unsorted and untreated household waste at Northwich in the UK.

The technology, called REnescience, has been tested at a demonstration plant in Copenhagen since 2009.

Dong said the design and planning of the plant have been completed, and the majority of the supply and installation contracts have been concluded.

It expects construction work to start at the end of February, and that the plant will be commissioned in early 2017.

The plant will have an annual capacity of 120,000 tonnes of waste, which will be supplied by the UK waste management company FCC Environment.

Dong executive vice president Thomas Dalsgaard said: “The decision to build the first plant is a very important step in our roll-out of the REnescience biotechnology.

“This is an entirely new way of treating household waste where we very effectively can ensure that we get as many resources as possible from our waste.”

FCC Environment group development director Richard Belfield said: “This is an exciting new technology for the disposal of municipal residual waste which is potentially set to revolutionise our thinking as an industry of what can be achieved.

“Not only does this technology convert waste into energy without the need for the combustion of the waste, it will for the first time, be able to extract the valuable recyclable materials which so far have been difficult if not out of reach in traditional municipal residual waste treatment processes.”

Image: impression of what the new plant will look like (Dong Energy)