Powering an Alternative Tomorrow

Reducing our carbon emissions, gaining more outcomes from the products we create and discard, using our natural resources in smarter ways are of course all necessary to achieve a better future.

At Phoenix Energy Australia we focus on the conversion of waste products to create ‘clean energy’.
Our thermal waste to energy technologies include mass combustion and plasma assisted gasification.

What key drivers are compelling Australian Councils to adopt a Waste to Energy strategy?

There are three major factors that are driving the introduction of Waste to Energy plants:

The first is a realisation that landfills are poor performers from an environmental aspect both in groundwater discharges and methane emissions as well as “locking-up” valuable land space that could be better utilised. It is estimated that Waste to Energy plants reduce the need for landfills by over 90%.

The second is that Waste to Energy is one of a range of renewable technologies that need to be adopted so Australia meets its renewable energy target of 20% by 2020 as set by the RET legislation. It has been estimated that one tonne of MSW processed in a thermal Waste to Energy plant rather than landfilled reduces greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 1 tonne of CO2 (equivalent); through avoidance of landfill methane gas generation, avoidance of CO2 emitted by fossil fuel based energy generation and avoidance of CO2 generation through the recovery of metals and reuse of the ash/slag by-products.

The third is that Waste to Energy recovers the calorific value from the waste and converts that to baseload energy (i.e. a continuous source of steam, electricity or syngas, in the case of gasification, which can then be used as a natural gas substitue or for the production of liquid fuels), thus reducing reliance on coal-fired power stations, hence adding to our responses to climate change. It is estimated that one tonne of MSW processed in a Waste to Energy plant rather than landfilled reduces our reliance on oil by one barrel or 0.25 tonnes of coal.