Two firms in the running for new waste treatment facility

A shortlist of two companies, bidding to build and run a new treatment facility in Leeds to deal with rubbish that is not recycled, will be presented to senior councillors next week.

Leeds City Council's executive board is being updated on the project’s progress when it meets on Friday (12th).

The process to find a contractor to build a waste treatment facility started in July 2008, and a wide range of companies initially put bids forward.

These were shortlisted to four in summer 2009. Following a further evaluation process the four submissions were reduced to two. The remaining bidders will now be asked to refine their solutions with a final decision expected in early 2011.

The two firms in the running are Aire Valley Environmental and Veolia ES Aurora.

Aire Valley Environmental is proposing to construct a facility on part of the site of the existing Knostrop wastewater treatment works, handling around 230,000 tonnes of Leeds’ waste every year.

Veolia’s proposal is to build a facility on the former wholesale market site on Pontefract Lane in Cross Green, which will handle around 190,000 tonnes of Leeds’ waste per year.

Both bidders propose similar technologies, mechanically removing even more materials for recycling before burning the remaining waste to generate electricity to the national grid (known as energy from waste).

As well as being updated on the bidding process, the executive board is also being asked to agree to formally drop plans to build a dedicated waste transfer station on Evanston Avenue in Kirkstall.

After receiving more details about the costs of developing the site, council officers have concluded that it wouldn’t be value for money.

The council has already begun talking to local residents and businesses about the proposals and this will continue throughout the year. Between now and the autumn more detailed information about the plans, the bidders and the chosen treatment technologies will be released.

Councillor James Monaghan, executive board member with responsibility for environmental services said:

“We can no longer simply bury thousands of tonnes of rubbish in landfill sites, we have to find another – sustainable – way of dealing with Leeds’ waste.

“That of course – does include recycling even more in Leeds and we’ve set ourselves the target of at least 50 per cent by 2020. However there will still be waste that is not recycled and we cannot continue to bury this in the ground.

“We are now at an important stage of the process to build this new waste treatment facility.

“Narrowing down the shortlist to the final two bidders is significant, because now we know what type of technology will be used and two possible sites.

“Now, we need to continue to explain both proposals to local residents and businesses so they understand what is going on and what will happen next.

“The importance of this facility to assist us, along with recycling, deal with the rubbish we produce every day, can’t be underestimated.

ENDS
For media enquiries please contact:
Andy Carter, Leeds City Council (0113) 395 0393
e-mail: andy.carter@leeds.gov.uk