‘Waste to energy’ project set to begin
ISLAMABAD: The first biomass electricity generation system in Pakistan, turning waste into energy, is set to start working soon at the Almoiz Industries Ltd in Dera Ismail Khan, Alternative Energy Development Board (AEDB) Chief Executive Officer Arif Alauddin announced on Tuesday.
With an investment of $11.34 million, the project will be able to generate 27 megawatts (MW) of electricity and consume 1,777 tonnes of biomass/ solid waste per day, the AEDB chief said.
He said that the AEDB had issued a Letter of Intent (LoI) to Almoiz Industries for a waste-to-power generation plant in September 2005, with an installed capacity of 27MW, out of which 12MW of electricity would be used for running a sugar plant and 15MW would be sold to the national grid.
He added that the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) between Almoiz Industries and the Peshawar Electric Supply Company (PESCO) had already been concluded. He said that it was a 10-year agreement, which could be extended by the parties’ mutual consent. Alauddin stated that these systems were used worldwide to convert many types of waste into energy.
Besides adding to the nation’s power generation capacity, the system would also help ensure a cleaner environment, he added.
He said that the AEDB had planned extensively for the execution and implementation of the project with the private sector’s collaboration.
Apart from the Almoiz Industries, several other private investors were also planning to set up their projects in other civic centres of the country, he added.