The councils, which are working together under the title Project Reduce, first advertised for bidders for the contract in April this year after landing £138 million in PFI-funding from Defra. The Outline Business Case for the PFI-funding used mechanical biological treatment and in-vessel composting as its reference technology (see letsrecycle.com story).
The bidders on the long-list are (in alphabetical order):
• A consortium of construction and services company Amey and Spanish waste management firm Cespa
• Birmingham-based waste management firm Biffa
• American incineration giants Covanta Energy
• Greenstar E.ON Energy from Waste; a consortium of Irish-owned waste and recycling firm Greenstar and energy company E.ON
• German energy-from-waste specialists MVV Umwelt GmbH
• Resources from Waste; a consortium of utilities firm United Utilities, construction firm Laing O'Rourke and equity investor John Laing.
• Milton Keynes-based waste and organics specialist Shanks
• Spanish waste management company Urbaser SA
• Waste and recycling company Viridor
• Northampton-based Waste Recycling Group
Councillor Mike Galloway, cabinet member for environment, planning and growth at Milton Keynes, said: “We are delighted to have had so much interest in Project Reduce from such strong businesses and consortia. The councils already work hard to minimise waste and both authorities exceed national targets for recycling and composting.”
“However, predicted housing growth over the next twenty years will mean an increase in the amount of waste generated and we must find more sustainable ways of dealing with it,” he added.
Cllr Heather Smith, cabinet member for environment, growth and transport at Northamptonshire, said: “Our aim is to divert as much waste as possible away from landfill and this is one of the first steps towards that goal. We are looking forward to engaging with the industry to develop solutions to help us achieve this.”
Technology
Project Reduce is currently ‘technology neutral', with Cllr Smith, who was recently appointed chair of the Joint Waste Disposal Committee which governs the project, claiming that the two local authorities would keep an “open-mind” about treatment solutions.
Each council has identified a site through its own waste development plan document process for potential infrastructure construction, with Milton Keynes council opting for its site is at Old Wolverton and Northamptonshire choosing a site close to the A45 at Great Billing.
Bidders may opt not to use these or may bring forward sites of their own, so it is not certain at this stage whether either piece of land will be used for Project Reduce. Any proposal for either site still has to go through the planning process, including full public consultation.
The overall solution and technology that is finally chosen will need to be compliant with the policies of each council, including those relating to planning, and the partnership expects new facilities to be in place by 2013/14.
Subscribe for free