HZI Steinmüller builds waste treatment centre in San Sebastian

The capital of the province of Gipuzkoa in Basque. The contracting authority is a Spanish project company led by Urbaser S.A.. The project company is commissioned by the local waste collector Gipuzkoako Hondakinen Kudeaketa SA to finance, construct and operate the waste treatment centre. HZI Steinmüller as the leader of the general contractor consortium will coordinate the planning, design, procurement, erection and commissioning of the complete complex and will erect the turnkey thermal waste treatment plant.

The concept of the waste treatment plant includes a mechanical-biological treatment stage as well as two waste incineration lines with an annual capacity of 200,000 tonnes of municipal waste. The energy generated is enough to provide electrical power to more than 45,000 households. After completion in 2019, the plant will be one of the cleanest waste treatment plants in the world. This is achieved by a three-stage flue gas cleaning concept. In the first stage, sulphur dioxide and other acidic gases are separated by means of a dry sorption process based on bicarbonate. A second stage eliminates nitrogen oxides by the use of SCR catalysts. The third stage reduces the remaining acidic pollutants as well as dioxins and furans to a minimum via a lime hydrate-based sorption process.

The mechanical-biological treatment and the thermal utilisation will replace the landfill of the waste in the currently used landfill Lapatx. The investment volume of the waste treatment centre is € 217 million, the total project value including financing and 32-year operation is about € 770 million. More information at www.steinmueller-babcock.com