Photo: Deponija
The municipal waste management utility in Podgorica plans to build a waste-to-energy facility. Minister of Energy Saša Mujović backed the Montenegrin capital city’s plan.
The Western Balkans host only one waste-to-energy facility, in Serbia’s capital Belgrade.
Around 350,000 tons of waste are collected annually in Montenegro, and around 250 tons a day end up in Podgorica at the landfill operated by municipal waste utility Deponija, RTCG reported.
Aleksandar Božović, the firm’s director, pointed out that it is now getting landfill gas from closed sanitary tubs and flaring it. The waste-to-energy plant could produce electricity worth EUR 1.000 to EUR 1,500, he added.
The produced electricity could also be used to power public electric buses
The company has yet to finish a feasibility study, however Božović said that the facility could supply about 400 households. The electricity could be fed into the distribution grid or used to power public electric buses.
Minister Saša Mujović stressed that the base consumption of Podgorica is about 100 MW, noting that one up-to-date waste-to-energy facility with a capacity of 15 MW could provide 15%. It isn’t something anyone should throw away, he stressed.
The investment in the waste incinerator is estimated at EUR 150 million
The thermal treatment of waste, in his words, could also solve the environmental issues that the landfill waste causes. Mujović said the European Union’s requirements for the treatment and disposal of waste are getting stricter and stricter.
Waste incineration eliminates waste while electricity is generated, which is a win-win solution, he asserted.
The investment in the waste-to-energy facility is estimated at EUR 150 million.
Of note, in 22 EU member states there are 155 facilities generating energy from hazardous waste and as many as 497 using non-hazardous waste from households, industry, and the building sector as an alternative fuel.
Be the first one to comment on this article.