Covanta to exhibit plans for Cheshire incinerator

The company is one of those seeking a major long-term waste disposal contract being offered by Cheshire county council, and a 450,000 tonne annual capacity plant near Middlewich is central to its bid.

The facility proposed for the Midpoint 18 Business Park would include a 90-metre chimney, and could cope with the whole of the county's 434,000 tonnes of household waste arisings.

However, with Cheshire aiming for a 54% recycling and composting target for 2020, the facility will also have some surplus capacity for third party municipal solid waste or non-hazardous commercial and industrial waste from within Cheshire.

The facility would potentially cut Cheshire's landfill rate to 4%, the company said. Covanta managing director Malcolm Chilton said: “Our plan will mean the need for additional landfill sites in Cheshire would be virtually eliminated.”

CHP

Using “moving grate” technology, the facility would generate 38MW of power from both residual waste and potentially a small amount of refuse-derived fuel – the equivalent of enough power for 20,000 homes. It is being designed to produce both electricity and combined heat and power, and the company said the facility would have an energy efficiency of between 25% and 26%.

The details of the Covanta project are to be unveiled to local residents and businesses at three events at Middlewich Community Church from February 21.

Covanta, which already operates 34 incinerators around the world, is working with the Middlewich site's owner, the property division of construction firm Pochin's plc, to develop the Cheshire project.

Having commissioned architects AEW to produce two possible designs for the plant, Covanta said it will finalise and submit its planning application later in spring 2008, following the public exhibitions next week.

If successful, the project should create 300 construction jobs and 50 permanent operational jobs, the company said.

PFI

Covanta is among eight companies going for the Cheshire Private Finance Initiative contract, which is to be supported by £40 million in government PFI credits and could ultimately be worth £1 billion to the successful company. A shortlist of three or four bidders is expected to be announced in March or April.

The county is the proposed home of a string of possible energy-from-waste plants at the moment, including projects from Waste Recycling Group (proposing a plant of 300,000 tonnes annual capacity), Ineos Chlor (850,000 tonnes) and Peel Holdings (600,000 tonnes) as well as Covanta.

Local opposition to the proposals is being led by the Cheshire Anti-Incinerator Network (CHAIN), which has described the proposals as “monstrosities”.

Covanta told letsrecycle.com that if it does not win the Cheshire PFI contract, it would have to rethink the Middlewich proposal.

A statement from the company said: “Cheshire county council is procuring the treatment for the county's municipal solid waste, and the Covanta solution is designed to address the needs set out in the procurement documentation. If Covanta was de-selected for the procurement, then they would have to review their position.”