Veolia nets Staffs energy-to-waste plant contract
2 Aug 2010
London – Staffordshire County Council has awarded Veolia Environmental Services (UK) plc its 25-year PFI (Private Finance Initiative) residual waste treatment and disposal contract, which is based on an energy recovery facility (ERF) located on the Four Ashes Industrial Estate.
The contract is worth around £1 billion – revenue from County Council, including third party waste and sale of electricity – over the lifetime of the contract and follows the company’s appointment as preferred bidder on May 21, 2010.
The Four Ashes will handle residual waste from Staffordshire as well as assisting Sandwell, Walsall and Warwickshire. Designed to handle 300,000 tonnes per annum of residual waste, the ERF will export in excess of 23MW to the National Grid - enough to power 32,000 homes.
Veolia is already undertaking pre-planning work on revised proposals for the permitted ERF at Four Ashes which will reduce the building’s overall footprint, size and height.
A new planning application will be submitted in early August with a view to the building being completed by the end of 2013, the company said.
Denis Gasquet, chief operating officer of Veolia Environnement and CEO of Veolia Environmental Services, said: “This decision reflects our proven ability to deliver a complete PFI package based on our development and technology expertise.
“We have established a strong presence in Staffordshire and will be working closely with the county council to develop the new facility in line with its environmental objectives and maximise landfill diversion.”
Staffordshire County Council leader, Philip Atkins, said: “This is a landmark event for the county council as it has signed the biggest ever contract in its history.
“Veolia went head to head against some serious competitors to win this contract. It was able to offer maximum value and maximum quality to the taxpayer which is our number one priority.
“The contract will save Staffordshire taxpayers more than £250 million over the next 25 years. This contract is all about protecting taxpayers from escalating costs and protecting the environment from mounting piles of rubbish.”
According to Defra figures, the level of municipal waste being burned for energy in England reached 12.2% last year, up from 11.1% the previous year, while landfill disposal fell four percentage points to 50%. The government department currently has around 40 waste PFI projects on its books, though only two of which are operational, while two others are at the constrution phase.
