The Edinburgh and Midlothian Zero Waste project has successfully achieved financial close. Mott MacDonald is lenders’ technical advisor on the scheme, which is being implemented by FCC Environment UK who was appointed by the City of Edinburgh and Midlothian councils to provide waste management services in 2014.
The scheme consists of a mechanical treatment plant and energy from waste (EfW) facility and is designed to accept and process approximately 155,000 tonnes of waste a year. When complete, it will be capable of handling around 135,000 tonnes of residual municipal solid waste and 20,000 tonnes of commercial and industrial waste and/or solid refuse fuel each year. Ferrous and non-ferrous metals will be recovered for recycling, while the 14MW EfW facility will generate electricity that will be exported to the national grid for sale.
During the scheme’s financing stage Mott MacDonald reviewed project documentation and provided commentary on the technical risk profile for the project. The consultancy will now monitor construction and the first 10 years of operations in an ongoing role, which will include undertaking site visits to monitor the progress of works and overall facility performance.
Russell Dallas, Mott MacDonald’s project director, said: “Currently in Scotland approximately two thirds of household waste is sent to landfill which is not a sustainable disposal method, especially as the government has set a target for no more than 5% of waste being sent to landfill by 2025. The Zero Waste project will play a key role in the procurement of long-term treatment facilities for the food and residual waste collected in Edinburgh and Midlothian, thereby contributing to the national improvement programme.”
The Edinburgh and Midlothian Zero Waste project is scheduled to be operational by the middle of 2019. Engineering, procurement and construction services will be provided by a joint venture between Hitachi Zosen Inova AG and FCC Medio Ambiente S.A..