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A new waste-to-power plant has been commissioned in Egypt.
- Teh plant will utilise anaerobic gasification technology to turn waste into electricity.
- The plant will benefit about 5,000 people in the community of Qalhana.
The governorate of Fayoum in Egypt has commissioned a waste-to-power plant to generate electricity from solid and agricultural waste. The plant can generate 100 kWh every year from 2.5 tonnes of waste.
The plant utilises anaerobic gasification technology. This process does not burn the solid remains directly; rather, waste is broken up with heat and separated in the absence of air. The particles are then reconstituted to form gases (hydrogen, carbon monoxide, methane, ethylene, carbon dioxide and bio-carbon). Residual products from the process are used as bio-fertilisers for agriculture.
The European Union financed the new waste-to-power plant. The plant will help to reduce pollution in Egypt, a country that produces 95 million tonnes of waste annually. The Egyptian government plans to reduce solid waste pollution by 50 per cent through the adoption of a circular economy.