C&G Environmental Protection Holdings will invest Bt900 million in its first waste-to-energy plant in Bangkok that can reduce waste by 500 tonnes a day while producing 9.8 megawatts.
Headquartered in Hong Kong and listed on the Singapore main board in April 2005, C&G is a leading waste-to-energy investor and operator in China.
C&G invests in, constructs, operates and maintains waste incineration power plants for the treatment of municipal solid waste under the build-operate-transfer investments schemes in China.
The company operates five waste-to-energy plants – Jinjiang, Hui’an, Anxi, Fuqing in Fujian and Huangshi in Hubei – and a sludge treatment plant in Jinjiang. Five more plants are slated to commence operation in 2012-13 – Jianyang and Nanping in Fujian, Langfang in Hebei, Yingkou in Liaoning and Xiaogan in Hubei.
Asia-Pacific’s waste-to-energy market will post substantial growth by 2015, as more countries view the technology as a sustainable alternative to landfills for disposing waste while generating clean energy, according to a report by Frost & Sullivan.
The report said the industry could grow at a compound annual rate of 6.7 per cent for thermal waste-to-energy and 9.7 per cent for biological waste-to-energy from 2008-15. Thermal technologies use heat or combustion to convert both organic and inorganic wastes while biological technologies use bacteria to digest organic wastes to yield fuel.
Ning He, chief executive officer of C&G Environmental Protection (Thailand), said C&G signed a build-operate-transfer agreement with the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration in July last year for the construction of a waste-to-energy project in Nong Khaem in Bangkok, with a total investment of about Bt900 million.
The plant will start up in the middle of next year to eliminate waste in Bangkok by about 500 tonnes per day. The concession will run 20 years. The plant can produce 9.8MW but actual output will be 7-8MW. Part of the electricity will be used by the factories locating in the same area, while the rest will be sold to the Metropolitan Electricity Authority (MEA) under a contract to be signed this month.
“Our revenues will be generated by an elimination fee for the waste in Bangkok, which is at about Bt970 per tonne, as well as by electricity sales,” Ning said.
Under the renewable energy policy governed by the Energy Department, C&G can apply for an electricity subsidy of Bt3.5 per kWh, besides the basic tariff, for the first seven years of operations. Under a policy instituted by the Board of Investment, C&G can apply for a tax-exempt period of up to eight years, and then five years of 50-per-cent tax reduction.
The company will secure financing for the Bangkok project from certain banks in Thailand and all debt repayment will be made in about seven years. The plant will reach its return on investment within 12 years.
The company is also looking to expand from the Thai operations to neighbouring countries starting from Malaysia. It expected to construct two power plants per year, which will require annual investment of about Bt5 billion.
“We chose Thailand as the location for constructing our first waste-to-energy plant outside China as Thailand is one of the most secure locations for foreign investment. The Thai government, however, should grant a clear regulation for alternative energy. Local authorities, such as the Energy Ministry and Interior Ministry, should have a consensus and clear conclusion regarding the policy on waste-to-energy plants,” he added.
