Waste-to-energy plants issue warning on lost electricity

Waste-to-energy companies say the Irish market loses enough electricity to supply about 1,000 homes a year because network limits mean they cannot generate power all the time.

Indaver in Duleek, Co Meath and Dublin Waste-to-Energy in Poolbeg, Dublin, burn “black-bin” refuse that cannot be treated any other way to generate enough electricity to supply up to 140,000 homes.

The local branch of their industry body, the Confederation of European Waste-to-Energy Plants (CEWEP) Ireland, says both are required to turn down their electricity output when other power sources are available.

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Consequently, enough electricity to supply 1,000 homes a year is lost to the system and the amount of waste they can treat is reduced by about 35,000 tonnes a year.

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That has to be diverted to landfill or exported to other waste-to-energy plants in Europe, neither of which is in line with policy and endangers the State’s own targets for using refuse to generate power.

CEWEP says there could be a longer-term public health risk from this if untreated waste were to build up as a result.

In addition, plants themselves end up with practical and technical problems as they are designed to run constantly and not to be turned down. This adds to maintenance costs and could shorten their lifespans.

CEWEP warns that the frequency and duration of turn-downs are likely to increase as more wind and solar energy become available to the grid, aggravating the problems they face.

At the same time, the body notes that more than half the electricity the two plants generate is classed as renewable, as it re-uses carbon, so green energy is lost to the grid.

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Turning down waste-to-energy plants hinders their primary purpose, which is to treat refuse that cannot be dealt with in any other way, a key difference between these and other generators on the system, says CEWEP.

It also maintains that no other such facilities in Europe are asked to turn down their electricity supplies in this way.

CEWEP vice-president Jackie Keaney says that the solution is to classify waste-to-energy plants as “always-on” electricity suppliers, which regulators can do. “The current policy means the opportunity to produce sustainable energy, enough to power almost 1,000 homes per annum, is being lost,” she says. “At a time when Ireland is under pressure to reach its climate targets, every source of renewable energy should be maximised.”

CEWEP has raised the issue with Department of the Environment, national grid operator EirGrid and the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities.

Consultations are under way on the system for prioritising electricity suppliers. Ms Keaney says her organisation welcomes this, but warns that the process could take several years.

“As a country, we cannot afford to wait,” she says, adding that regulators need to classify waste-to-energy plants as “always on”.

According to a spokesman, EirGrid never asks waste-to-energy plants to halt generating electricity completely, but there are occasions where they are requested to minimise their output. “They are already treated as a top priority,” said the spokesman, who added that the regulator determines this.

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