Garcia meets with WTE investors

CEBU, Philippines — Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia yesterday met with the proponents of the waste-to-energy (WTE) facility to be developed in the province. Once completed, the facility may be the first of its kind in the entire country.

The governor said they have invited 10 potential investors who have shown interest in developing a WTE facility in Cebu.

The Capitol presented during the meeting the location of the property where the proposed facility is to be built. The province has offered one of its properties in the City of Naga because of its proximity to the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP).

Also attended during the meeting were officials of the Department of Energy who explained to the proponents the requirements of the plant and whether it will be placed in the renewable energy division or as an independent power-producer.

“We will outline the advantages and disadvantages of both. We will try to say asa ang mas… expeditious nga treatment niining waste-to-energy because sa tibuok nasud wa pa man gyuy WTE gud,” Garcia said.

“It is also, as far as the DOE is concerned, a learning process kung unsa gyuy maayo niini,” she added.

According to Garcia, the 10 proponents who have signified their interest to undertake the project include a Chinese firm and a Japanese company. Most of the interested investors, however, are Filipino companies.

These Filipino companies, however, will use imported equipment and technology.

“Most of the companies are Philippine-based but ilang technology is of course from outside kay wa man gyud ta ana dire,” Garcia said.

The governor explained the need for such a facility as she pointed out the garbage problem in the province.

“Our garbage is getting to be another crisis,” Garcia said.

Garcia said that the sanitary landfill, the current system of solid waste disposal, is “inefficient.”

“We continue to rely on a so-called sanitary landfill which actually just digging a hole in the ground and filling it up. You call it sanitary kay imong i-line with plastic which eventually ang leachate ana mo-seep into the ground,” she said.

The WTE project would be an integrated solid waste management program. It would include the collection of the waste and its transport to the plant where it will be processed as an energy source.  FPL (FREEMAN)