The Joint Committee of the North Wales Residual Waste Treatment Project (NWRWTP), set up to manage the residual waste collected by Flintshire, Denbighshire, Conwy, Gwynedd and the Isle of Anglesey Councils, has announced that waste companies SITA UK and Wheelabrator are the final two bidders selected to operate and manage an £800 million waste facility contract. Veolia ES Aurora Ltd has been now been ruled out as a bidder for the project.
According to the Joint Committee, Wheelabrator and SITA UK have been chosen for their proven track record of operating such facilities in the UK, Europe and the United States.
Wheelabrator and SITA UK outlined their proposals for the site, with both bidders proposing the use of energy from waste (EfW) technology, (fulfilling the committee's requirement that the facility must use proven waste technology), and using a combined rail and road transportation option for bulked up waste to reduce transport congestion, carbon emissions and local impact. The committee has estimated that use of rail transport could potentially save 60 per cent in carbon emissions compared to a road-only solution.
The residual waste facility (set to be operational by 2017) will be part of a Welsh Government-sponsored project to divert approximately 150,000 tonnes of non-recyclable residual waste from landfill. The government’s planned investment over the 25-year timeline of the project is £600-800 million.
Expectations for the facility set forth by the Joint Committee stipulate that:
- The facility is proportionally sized to receive primarily residual household waste from North Wales' five counties
- The facility uses proven technology
- Rail will be the primary transportation option for household waste
- The facility will use higher-than-industry-standard air quality monitoring
- The facility will be highly cost effective for a 25 year operational period
The NWRWTP was established with the purposes of enabling Welsh authorities to deliver the government's 'Towards Zero Waste' strategy (which aims to make Wales a ‘high recycling nation’ by 2025 and a zero waste nation by 2050), and finding a more sustainable and cost-effective solution for dealing with residual waste.
Though the location of the facility is yet to be determined, and bidders have been invited to propose sites of their own, the most likely location for the facility site is at Deeside Industrial Park.
The preferred bidder will be selected in 2013.
Further details can be found on the NWRWTP website.
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