China has approached the government with a proposal to build waste-based power plants in order to utilise what was described as the potential of the renewable energy sector in Bangladesh.
The proposal came at a conference on sustainable energy jointly organised by CMEC Renewable Energy and Solarland Bangladesh Co Ltd in association with KIPOR and Guolian Huaguang Power Engineering Co Ltd at Gulshan Club yesterday.
“The concept is still in its primary stage, and it will take 15 months to finalise the initiative, given that Bangladesh agrees with the proposal,” said Benny Weidong Xue, managing director of Solarand Bangladesh Co Ltd, at the conference styled the “Second International Conference on Future of Sustainable Energy.”
Huaguang, which focused on garbage management, biomass and waste-based power plants at the conference, has already produced 30MW power plants that generate coal and fuel from garbage.
Annisul Huq, mayor of Dhaka North City Corporation, told the conference he wants to build “mid-stations” by January next year so that wastes collected from homes can be managed there before reaching the final landfill site.
At present, small vans carry household wastes and pile up at an open space before big vehicles collect them to dump at the landfill site on the capital’s suburbs.
This process pollutes the environment and creates a foul smell. Dhaka city produces around 5,000 tonnes of garbage a day.
Annisul said he would build 72 mid-stations where the waste would be managed before dumping it at the final landfills.
He said he had a target to build them by January 1, 2016. “But it is not easy because we do not have adequate lands to implement the plan.”
The mayor said his city corporation has 36 wards and he would try to get a small piece of land in each of those.
“I am prioritising waste management and also the use of waste,” the businessman turned politician said. “With waste produced in Dhaka alone, at least 100MW power can be generated.”
Annisul said Chinese and Korean firms had approached both him and Dhaka South City Corporation Mayor Sayeed Khokon with proposals to build garbage-based power plants.