Westminster renews trio of contracts with Veolia

The contracts include a 3.5-year deal to manage dry, mixed and source segregated recycling, another 3.5-year contract for the treatment of food waste – both commencing in September 2016 – and a 6.5-year contract for the treatment of residual and bulky waste and street sweepings commencing in 2017.

The new contracts extend a partnership between the council and the waste management contractor which began in 1995 – renewed in 2010 – and following a competitive tendering process which was ongoing throughout summer 2015 and early 2016.

Under the renewed deals mixed recyclates will continue to be taken to Veolia’s materials recovery facility in Southwark, where they will be sorted and separated for reprocessing, whilst food waste will be treated in partnership with Biogen at its Anaerobic Digestion facility in Baldock, Hertfordshire.

Contracts

The contracts are expected to involve the processing of around 17,000 tonnes of commingled materials per year as well as 5,000 and 2,500 tonnes of mixed paper and card and segregated glass. The food waste contract involves the handling of between 1,500 and 7,000 tonnes of separately collected material per year – the majority coming from businesses in the borough.

Up to 180,000 tonnes per year of residual waste will be sent for treatment at the South East London Combined Heat and Power (SELCHP) facility, which is operated by Veolia. Street sweepings will be recycled via Veolia’s specialist facility at Rainham and bulky waste, such as furniture at its Greenwich facility.

Estelle Brachlianoff, senior executive vice president for Veoila UK and Ireland, said: “We are delighted to extend our partnership and I believe we have been successful in securing these contracts because we have the capability to provide innovative solutions that allow us to transform the materials we handle into valuable resources. As the Business in the Community’s Responsible Business of the Year 2016 we look forward to continuing to support Westminster city council and its residents along their journey towards a more sustainable future.”

Councillor Melvyn Caplan, Westminster’s cabinet member for city management, said: “Westminster is a particularly challenging environment for delivering sustainable waste management.  We look forward to working with Veolia and further developing our partnership and maximising the recycling and recovery of wastes collected.”

The council has targeted a 35% recycling rate for 2020 – compared to the council’s current performance of 19%.