Biogas completes waste-to-energy plant

Brazilian joint venture Biogas has completed construction of a plant that uses methane generated from the 345 acre Bandeirantes landfill near Sao Paulo to fire a 23MW power plant, Netherlands-based consultancy and engineering company Arcadis said in a statement Tuesday. Arcadis participates in the project through local subsidiary Arcadis Logos. Other JV owners are Van der Wiel Stortgas and Brazilian company Heleno Fonseca Constructechnica. Biogas has invested 12mn reais (US$4.19mn) in the plant, according to the statement, although previous reports have valued the project at 60mn reais. Arcadis could not be reached for comment Tuesday. Biogas delivers gas to the power plant, which is managed by a consortium led by local bank Unibanco. The gas delivery is based on a 12-year contract worth 100mn reais. The plant saves emissions of 8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide by generating power from methane and thus qualifies for carbon credits, the statement said. "This is an excellent example of the design, build, finance and operate (DBFO) projects in which we are pursuing our strategic growth," Arcadis chairman and CEO Harrie Noy said. "We have taken the initiative from the early stages of development and contributed with our knowledge to the realization of the project. Risks are limited because selling the energy is based on long-term contracts."