Nevis to convert waste to energy by end of 2015
US-BASED Omni-Alpha has inked a deal with the government of Nevis to build a US$20-million waste-to-energy plant on the Caribbean island.
The company was given the go-ahead on Tuesday, following several months of negotiations.
The deal requires the Baltimore, Maryland-based energy company to deliver 2,250 megawatt-hours (MWh) of energy to the electricity grid on Nevis each year.
Omni-Alpha will also build a solar farm to ensure that the targeted energy supply will be met.
Construction of the power plants are scheduled to begin by December. They are expected to be commissioned by the end of 2015.
Flucuating oil prices and increasing electricity costs prompted the Nevis Island Administration (NIA) to replace fossil fuel generation with renewable energy sources.
The country is already developing geothermal energy sources to power the island.
The partnership with Omni-Alpha also provides Nevis with an environment-friendly solution for its waste management.
“It is expected that the waste to energy plant will consume virtually all of the daily household and commercial waste, tyres, plastics, paper, plant and vegetable material that the island of Nevis currently generates and provide much needed ease on the island’s sole solid waste disposal site at Long Point, Nevis,” said a release by the NIA.
