The approval of the loan was granted during the sitting of the assembly on January 31, with 534 votes for and 12 against.

The project will be implemented at the Hteinpin landfill in Hlaing Tharyar township, Yangon, and is expected to be complete by 2022.

Once the project is up and running, and estimated 1,000 tonnes of waste out of 2,500 tonnes produced daily in Yangon will be processed to produce compressed natural gas (CNG), carbon dioxide, refuse-derived fuel (RDF), and compost. 

Officials say the 30 tonnes of CNG produced daily from the project will be directly sold to CNG vehicles. Negotiations with businesses such as brick-making factories have also been conducted for other products that will be generated by the plant. For example, an estimated 40 tonnes of liquefied carbon dioxide could be sold to soft drinks manufacturers and cold storage facilities for meat and vegetables daily.

The terms for the loan call for a repayment period of 62 years, with a grace period of five years, at an interest rate of 0.1 percent a year.

“Yearly revenue from products like CNG, carbon dioxide, RDF, and compost is projected to be at least K1.75 billion or about €950,000, so repayment of the loan will come from the income generated by the project,” said U Maung Maung Win, deputy minister of Planning, Finance and Industry.

Studies show that Yangon’s 33 townships generate between 2,300 and 2,500 tonnes of household waste a day. Another 150 tonnes of industrial waste and 2.4 tonnes of medical waste can be added to the total.

Of the total, 1,500 tonnes is sent daily to Hteinpin by rubbish trucks.

In addition to the waste-to-energy project, other negotiations are also being made to deal with another 500 tonnes of daily waste in Hteinpin.   

“Other negotiations are also being made for a pilot project with the Right Person Group from Germany to generate energy from another 120 tonnes of waste from Hteinpin and for processing 380 tonnes of waste in cooperation with South Korea. According to a study, in the next four years, Yangon will no longer have space in its landfills for its waste,” U Maung Maung Win said. – Translated

Source: https://www.mmtimes.com/news/approval-given-eu50-million-loan-waste-energy-project-yangon.html