UAE’s first waste-to-energy plant to produce 30MW of low-carbon electricity annually

Construction of the Sharjah Waste to Energy plant – the first project of Emirates Waste to Energy, a joint venture between Beeah Energy and Masdar – is now complete, with the project having entered the testing and commissioning phase.

Once operational, the plant will enable Sharjah to become the Middle East’s first zero-waste city, turning unrecyclable waste into clean energy and increasing the current landfill diversion rate from 76 per cent to 100 per cent, according to state news agency WAM.

At full operational capacity, the plant will help divert up to 300,000 tonnes of unrecyclable waste away from landfill each year while producing 30 megawatts (MW) of low-carbon electricity, enough to power 28,000 homes in Sharjah.

The 30 MW plant will displace almost 450,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions a year and preserve the equivalent of 45 million cubic metres of natural gas.

Constructed by France-based industrial contractor CNIM, the plant covers an area of 80,000 sqm.Within the plant, unrecyclable waste is fed into a boiler to produce high-pressure steam, turning electric turbine generators. Toxins and pollutants are filtered from the flue gas produced during the process. Bottom ash is collected to recover metals and ash material for use in construction and roadwork applications, while fly ash is collected and treated separately.

Adjacent to the waste-to-energy plant is a waste-management complex operated by Beeah Recycling, Beeah Group’s recycling and material recovery business, which has already helped achieve a 76 percent landfill waste diversion rate in the emirate of Sharjah. Unrecyclable waste from the complex will be transported to the waste-to-energy plant.

“We are confident that with a successful testing and commissioning period, and once the plant is fully operational, we will also demonstrate how waste-to-energy is an essential innovation to sustaining the circular economy, tackling the challenge of unrecyclable waste, and serving as a more affordable, low-carbon alternative to traditional fossil fuels,” said Khaled Al Huraimel, group CEO of Beeah Group.

Beeah and Masdar have reportedly begun exploring opportunities for the Emirates Waste to Energy company to open similar plants across the UAE and the wider region.

In related developments, in March, Beeah Energy and UK-based Chinook Sciences signed an agreement to commence the development of the region’s first waste-to-hydrogen plant. The facility will produce low-cost green hydrogen and high-quality activated carbon too. Non-recyclable waste wood and plastic will be processed using Chinook RODECS gasification and pyrolysis technology, which will produce up to 18,000kg of green hydrogen a day at full operational capacity.

Read: Development to begin on the region’s first waste-to-hydrogen plant in the UAE