Roorkee: Uttarakhand has received a go-ahead from the Centre to set up India’s first Ultra High Temperature Hydrolysis (UHTH) Reaction waste to energy plant at Roorkee. The project will be used to convert solid waste collected from seven major residential towns in the state into electricity.
The privately funded plant will be able to receive, handle and process 550 metric tonnes of unsegregated municipal solid waste and commercial waste typically emanating from urban and industrial areas per day.
The plant will have a closed reactor where ultra-high temperatures of up to 1,300 degrees Celsius are used to break down organic materials and generate electricity. This is for the first time that the technology invented in Germany will be used outside Europe. The plant will be run by New Centre Energy, an Oman-based private company. SIDCUL will soon sign an MoU with the company in this regard.
Talking to TOI, R Rajesh Kumar, managing director of State Infrastructure Development Corporation of Uttarakhand Limited (SIDCUL), said, “It is a significant victory for Uttarkahand as we had been working for a long time to bring this technology to India. SIDCUL will provide a 10-acre plot of land and all the required infrastructure for the project.”
The private company will invest Rs 1,800 crore in the plant which is expected to be running within 10 months. Elaborating on the project, secretary, urban development department, D S Garbyal, said, “In the first phase, solid waste from seven major residential towns of Uttarakhand will be processed at the site.”
The electricity generated from the plant will be purchased by Uttarakhand Power Corporation Limited (UPCL).
Meanwhile, Centre has directed Union ministry of new and renewable energy to classify the technology as a “renewable source of energy” and to explore ways it can be used to facilitate Swachh Bharat Mission.
Omendra Srivastava, national waste management expert, ministry of urban development, said, “The technology will be good for the state which needs a better solid waste disposal mechanism. The technology has features such as zero air emission, zero liquid affluent discharge and zero landfill which will be beneficial to the environment of Uttarakhand. The plant will also provide a boost to Clean Ganga Mission and Swachh Bharat Mission in Uttarakhand.”
