EEP awaits permit for waste-to-power plant
Second phase of big Samut Prakan project
Eastern Energy Plus Co (EEP) says it is ready to start developing a 100-megawatt refuse-derived fuel (RDF) power plant in Samut Prakan.
All that remains is for the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) to grant a power purchasing agreement (PPA).
The project to generate power from local industrial waste is worth about 8 billion baht, said EEP chief executive Kanapod Nitsiriphat.
The small power plant will sit at a huge landfill in Praksa district of Samut Prakan province, absorbing up to 7,500 tonnes of waste daily.
Egat and the Energy Regulatory Commission are jointly considering the PPA.
The 100-MW RDF in Praksa is the second phase of a major EEP project. Construction began recently on the first phase worth 2 billion baht.
For the second phase, EEP is still contemplating whether to seek a partner for further expansion, Mr Kanapod said.
The first phase, which sits at the same site, was developed by a subsidiary, Ratchaburi EEP Renewable Energy Co. It is expected to start commercial operations next December with a capacity of 9.98 MW.
Praksa district covers an area of 159 rai adjacent to Bangkok. The Samut Prakan administration and the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration have used the area as a landfill for over three decades.
The area has an estimated 10 million tonnes of waste on the ground and underground and obtains 2,500 tonnes a day from nearby communities.
EEP recently signed a contract with Britain-based Advanced Power Construction, an engineering and construction arm of Donasonic, to purchase technology and equipment for EEP’s waste separation line as part of the RDF plant.
The first phase of the RDF plant is expected to eliminate 600-800 tonnes of solid waste a day, well below the daily amount being dumped at the landfill.
Once the project is up and running, EEP is due to get a feed-in tariff of five baht per kilowatt-hour for 20 years, with a bonus of 70 satang per kilowatt-hour for eight years.