CEFC committed up to AU$90 million towards Australia’s first large-scale energy from waste (EfW) project – a state-of-the-art plant at Kwinana in Western Australia capable of producing 36MW of electricity, enough to power up to 50,000 homes. The Kwinana plant will use technology that already has a strong track record in Europe and meets strict environmental requirements. The thermally-treated waste heats water into steam to produce electricity, with metals recovered for recycling and other by-product materials suitable for reuse in the construction industry. The Kwinana plant is being developed by Phoenix Energy and Macquarie Capital and global fund manager DIF holds a majority equity stake. It is expected to employ around 800 workers during its three-year construction phase, and some 60 operations staff on an ongoing basis. It has secured long-term supply contracts for the majority of its waste requirements from the Rivers Regional Council and the City of Kwinana. The CEFC finance is part of a AU$400 million debt syndicate that also includes SMBC, Investec, Siemens, IFM Investors and Metrics Credit Partners, some of which have prior experience in banking EfW projects globally. The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) is contributing a further AU$23 million in grant funding.
