IOC, NTPC & SDMC to develop waste-to-energy facilities at Okhla landfill site

• As per the MoU, SDMC would provide 1-acre land on lease at the landfill site, while IOC and NTPC will invest 50 percent each towards setting up and operating the facilities

• Lt Governor of Delhi Anil Baijal said that based on the success of the pilot plant, further plants are expected to be developed in Delhi

New Delhi: State-run IOC (Indian Oil Corporation Limited), NTPC Limited and SDMC (South Delhi Municipal Corporation) have signed a tripartite MoU on Tuesday for the development of waste-to-energy facilities at SDMC's landfill site in Okhla. As per the MoU, SDMC would provide 1-acre land on lease at the landfill site, while IOC and NTPC will invest 50 percent each towards setting up and operating the facilities.

Speaking on the occasion, Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan said that the government is placing a lot of thrust on promotion of bio-fuels and the SATAT scheme on CBG. He lauded both IOC and NTPC for coming together for setting up the project and remarked that the assurance the project provides because of being supported by two PSUs is tremendous. He also said that after the successful demonstration of the Plasma Enhanced Gasification technology, many more such plants are expected to be set up across the country, providing a solution to waste management which is climate-friendly and is beneficial to people, planet and economy. He also advised IOC and NTPC to come together in the creation of a hydrogen pathway.  

'Benefits of green energy have to be taken into consideration'

Speaking on the occasion, Minister of Power and New & Renewable Energy RK Singh elaborated on the importance of such waste-to-energy power plants in generation of renewable electricity, utilising waste materials, thereby assisting in self-sufficiency in power and also goals of Swachchh Bharat. He also mentioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of bringing together various ministries for synergy. He stressed on the fact that the power generated from renewable sources may be more expensive than conventional electricity, but the benefits of such green energy have to be taken into consideration in promoting renewable energy.  

Lt Governor of Delhi Anil Baijal, during his address, mentioned the benefits of the project for the people of the national capital. He added that based on the success of the pilot plant, further plants are expected to be developed in Delhi using similar technology. 

Waste-to-energy plant will address issue of waste management: IOC CMD

Sanjiv Singh, Chairman of IOC, stressed on the problem of waste management in Delhi. He added that, setting up of an waste-to-energy plant shall provide multiple benefits, such as reduction in import dependence, generation of renewable energy and advanced biofuels, reduction in Green House Gas (GHG) emissions, reduction in health and environmental hazards from landfills and reduction in legacy waste in the long run. He briefed the attendees on the various waste management techniques being implemented by Indian Oil. 

NTPC CMD Gurdeep Singh, in his address, mentioned that the demonstration project on waste-to-energy shall demonstrate the benefits of Plasma Enhanced Gasification technology and provide a stepping-stone for deployment of the technology for further plants assisting in waste management across the country.

SDMC Commissioner Gyanesh Bharti mentioned that about 3,750 MT of municipal solid waste is being generated daily in SDMC area, out of which 50 percent is being processed presently. After the successful implementation of this MoU, the capacity of this proposed plant will be enhanced to achieve 100 percent processing of municipal waste. SDMC will become the first municipal corporation to achieve this feat.

What will the plant do?

The demonstration plant will convert 50 tonnes per day (TPD) of refuse-derived fuel (RDF), obtained from segregation of municipal solid waste (MSW), to produce synthesis gas, or syngas, which shall in turn be used to generate electricity. The plant will deploy the state-of-the-art plasma gasification technology, which can process different kinds of wastes such as MSW/RDF, industrial waste, bio-mass, pet-coke, bio-medical waste and hazardous waste generated by some industries. The technology produces high-quality syngas per tonne of waste with zero pollution for more net power generation. All inerts are converted to vitrified slag, which can be used as road or building aggregate and also in manufacturing sanitary-ware and decorative tiles. The plant shall be designed as a zero liquid discharge plant with reduced water requirement.

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