Metro

Saturday November 7, 2009

Potential for green energy


PENANG has shortlisted four out of eight companies responding to an open tender invitation to tap methane gas from Phase I of the Pulau Burung landfill.

This is part of a move to explore supplementary revenue from the generation and sale of bio-energy and participation in carbon trading through Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) initiatives to reduce carbon emission under the Kyoto Protocol.

State Local Government Committee chairman Chow Kon Yeow said the shortlisted companies were from Korea, France and Denmark who were bidding for the project in partnership with local firms.

“Phase I of Pulau Burung is estimated to be able to produce approximately 10MW/hr renewable energy through the extraction of methane for power generation,” he said.

He said the state had, in March, invited interested parties to submit their proposals on landfill gas utilisation and implementation of CDM initiatives for Phase I.

The four companies will conduct self-funded feasibility studies and will submit their second proposals to the state by mid-December.

Chow said the successful applicant would register the Pulau Burung biogas generation project with the United Nations for the project to be assigned a carbon credit in order to be eligible for carbon trading in the open market.

On funding sources, Chow said the state was still exploring several options — sale of bio-energy, royalties, and carbon credit.

Jelutong MP Jeff Ooi, who is also the Penang Chief Minister’s chief of staff, said Phase I’s estimated 10MW/hr capacity for bio-energy would still make it an economical venture.

Apart from the prospect of tapping biogas for profit and contributing to a reduction in global carbon emission, Ooi said leachate treatment at Phase I was also imperative.

“Because of the September incident where there was an overflow of leachate to the streams, the Department of Environment gave instructions for facilities to be upgraded given the reclassification of the Phase I landfill from Class III, where the expectation for leachate treatment is less stringent, to Class IV.

“This means total solutions for leachate treatment must be put in place before more damage is done to the ecology,” he said.

Phase I, currently the state’s main sanitary landfill, will reach its maximum capacity by 2014. Land for Phase II has been acquired for development. Both phases add up to about 162ha of landfill.

Chow said the state was still exploring the ways and means to upgrade Phase I, while also looking at integrated planning for Phase II in terms of recycling through material recovery, waste processing and treatment, and revenue from CDM and generation of bio-energy.

“We welcome a design-build-operate-and-transfer (DBOT) model for Phase II of Pulau Burung sanitary landfill which should be finalised latest by 2013,” he said.

Apart from Pulau Burung, there are two older landfills in Penang — the Jelutong landfill and the Ampang Jajar landfill which has been closed and now serves as a garbage transfer station.

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