Waste-to-Energy plant in Bidadi to be operational in August

Bengaluru: After much delay, Karnataka’s first Waste-to-Energy (WTE) plant, which is being set up at Bidadi and the combined cycle gas power plant at Yelahanka are set to be operational in August. 

Announcing that majority of the works were completed and the operations would begin soon, Energy Minister KJ George said that the plants would be a unique and significant addition to the power infrastructure in the state. 

"Both the plants, with their innovative technology and sustainable energy generation, will be commissioned during the next month,” George said. 

Senior officials from the Karnataka Power Corporation Limited (KPCL) said that trial runs were completed at both the plants and they were now fine-tuning the systems to begin operations. 

The WTE plant at Bidadi is spread across 15 acres, has a capacity of 11.5 MW and is a joint project of the KPCL and the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP). 

The WTE plants usually use dry waste that ends up in the landfills. Dry waste is burnt at a high temperature to ensure complete combustion and the heat generated is used to generate electricity.

The combined cycle gas power plant will generate 236.825 MW through a gas turbine generator and 133.225 MW through a steam turbine generator, totalling 370.05 MW.

Both the projects have been delayed for a long time owing to various reasons. Earlier, the department had announced that the plants would begin operations by July.