Capitol makes headway in development of WTE facility

CEBU, Philippines — Efforts are bearing fruits in the Province of Cebu’s pursuit to establish a waste-to-energy (WTE) plant, which might be the first of its kind in the country.

Governor Gwendolyn Garcia said they have already met with the officials of Department of Energy for the legal, technical and financial requirements of the construction of WTE plant in the province.

During the first Economic Enterprise Council meeting, it was agreed that the plant would be constructed in the 64-hectare provincial lot along Uling Road in the City of Naga.

“We’re proceeding with this very, very carefully but very, very determinedly,” Garcia said. She added that the Province of Cebu has already sought the help of a consultant who is an expert on WTE.

Multiple local and national corporations have already manifested their interest in the public-private partnership (PPP) with the province for the construction of the WTE plant. In the PPP, the province will provide the property for the plant while the proponent will build the structure and assure the operation of the plant in the next 25 years.

The interested companies will be meeting with Garcia on November 6 to discuss further details about the WTE construction.

“By November 6, we shall have taken another step further,” Garcia said.

Garcia also updated that the Province of Cebu already asked for a listing of operational WTE plants and applications for WTE plants in the country. So far, there is none yet in the Philippines. There is also reportedly no application filed in Cebu.

The province is also preparing the terms of reference for the bidding invites for interested companies.(FREEMAN)