Bluesphere commences 5.2MW waste-to-energy project in US

Bluesphere, a clean energy company that develops, manages and owns renewable energy projects, has started the detailed design and engineering work for its 5.2MW waste-to-energy plant in Charlotte in the US state of North Carolina.

This detailed design and engineering work, which is expected to take about two months, is the first stage of project execution. It will be followed by work onsite.

'There will now be constant activity on the project until it starts producing power in the summer of 2015,' states Bluesphere CEO Shomi Palas. 'We have started the project on time and will produce and deliver power on schedule. This facility is a model for future Bluesphere projects.'

Bluesphere is the project owner, developer and manager for the anaerobic digester. It will handle organic waste such as food and farm waste that would normally go into landfills. The organic waste is processed in an anaerobic digester to emit biogas, which then is turned into electricity and compost is a by-product. The facility generates revenues from intake of organic waste, as well as the sale of clean, renewable electricity, and the sale of compost.

The company has signed on to provide $13.8 million (€10 million) in debt project financing for the facility and an environmental finance fund will provide equity project financing of $9.1 million. One of the largest power holding companies in the US has a signed a long-term contract with Bluesphere to purchase electricity generated at the Charlotte plant. Compost, which is a by-product of the organics-to-energy generation process, will be purchased under a contractual agreement, by one of the largest privately held composting companies in the world.

Blue Sphere is developing its second US organics-to-waste facility in Rhode Island and, by 2018, plans to have 11 facilities built with six more under construction and development.