The Essex Waste Partnership has today (January 3) confirmed a consortium of Urbaser and Balfour Beatty as the preferred bidder for its 2-3 billion residual waste treatment contract.
As reported exclusively by letsrecycle.com last month (see letsrecycle.com story), the company has emerged as the frontrunner for the 25-year deal ahead of fellow final bidder Resources for Waste,which includedShanks.
The Essex Waste Partnership consists of Essex county council, its 12 district and borough councils and the unitary authority of Southend-on-Sea borough council. It has been allocated 100.9 million of Waste Infrastructure Credits, previously referred to as Private Finance Initiative (PFI) credits, by the Government to help fund the cost of new waste infrastructure.
Under the deal, Urbaser/Balfour Beatty will build a Mechanical and Biological Treatment (MBT) facility to treat kerbside collected residual waste, trade waste collected by local Essex authorities, street sweepings, and all non-recyclable waste from household recycling centres across Essex and Southend.
Mechanical treatment
Residual waste entering the MBT will first be subjected to mechanical treatment whereby materials such as ferrous and non-ferrous metals, plastics and glass will be separated out for recycling before the remainder is put through a biostabilisation process. This causes the mass of the waste to reduce and dries it. The waste partnership explained that after six weeks the waste will become stabilised, meaning that itwill notbe able to break down, or decompose, any more, upon which it will be landfilled and/or used as a solid recovered fuel for use in energy plants.
The facility will be located on Courtauld Road in Basildon and will be be capable of treating up to 417,000 tonnes of municipal waste a year. As well as treating waste the facility will incorporate a visitor and education centre and will create 87 full-time jobs, acording to the Essex Waste Partnership.
The use of MBT technology is expected to complement local borough and district councils existing kerbside recycling schemes. The recycling performance in Essex has improved significantly over recent years. In 2010/11 the recycling rate reached over 50% and is forecast to continue to increase over the coming years.
Essex county Councillor Kevin Bentley, cabinet member for economic development & waste, said: Following a thorough evaluation process, we are confident that the proposal from Urbaser and Balfour Beatty will enable Essex and Southend to achieve a sustainable waste management solution which is affordable and environmentally acceptable. I also firmly believe that the new facility will be a valuable community and educational asset for Essex and Southend residents.
Urbaser
Urbaser Balfour Beattys bid director Tom Meacock said: We are absolutely delighted to have been awarded preferred bidder status by Essex county council with Southend borough council. Over the coming months we look forward to meeting, talking with and listening to local residents, businesses and community groups to ensure our facility is something the people of Essex will be proud of.
Urbaser Balfour Beattys success in Essex comes hot on the heels of the company being named preferred bidder last month for Gloucestershires 500 million residual waste treatment contract last month a deal where it also fought off competition from Shanks (see letsrecycle.com story).
Biowaste treatment facilities to support the residual waste treatment are to be procured by the Essex Waste Partnership separately.These facilities will treat green garden waste and kitchen food waste collected from residents in Essex.
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