Waste-to-Energy Facility in the Isle of Man

Waste-to-energy facility

Ramboll is the lead consultant in the McCarthy-Ramboll joint venture, which was appointed in 1997 to be the Client's representative during the preparation of the new waste-to-energy facility located on the outskirts of Douglas in the Isle of Man. Being an island, the Isle of Man faces special challenges in respect of limited land availability, limited labour resources, waste fluctuations due to tourism and a lack of economies of scale for some waste management processes. Therefore, in order to ensure self-sufficiency and reliability and obtain a sustainable and cost-effective solution, the Isle of Man Government decided to establish a waste-to-energy facility capable of treating the waste generated on the island.

The facility, which is a unique piece of architecture, consists of two lines: The primary waste incinerator is capable of incinerating 65,000 tpa of municipal solid waste/commercial waste and the secondary waste incinerator is capable of incinerating up to 5,000 tpa of clinical/animal waste as well as sewage screenings. The facility receives waste from 77,000 inhabitants. It produces 40,000 MWh electricity per annum and has been prepared for heat production.

The project agreement for the design, build and 25 years' operation of the facility was signed with SITA in October 2000. The value of the design and build element of the project is in the order of £40M. The facility has been in operation since August 2004 (primary waste incinerator) and July 2005 (secondary waste incinerator).

Ramboll’s part in the project

Ramboll's services included:

• Risk and PPP assessment
• Conceptual design and layout of the plant
• Preparation of tender documents for the facility on the basis of a 25-year DBO contract
• Procurement management
• Tender evaluation and contract negotiations
• Project and contract management
• Supervision during construction and commissioning

Ramboll is currently managing the Department of Local Government and the Environment’s continued obligations under the 25-year operating period of the project agreement between SITA (Isle of Man) Ltd. and the Department. The project agreement is the contract setting out financial, technical and managerial rights and obligations in relation to the operation of the facility.

Other waste-to-energy projects on islands

Ramboll has several references for waste-to-energy project on islands, including Guernsey, Alderney, Bermuda, Gibraltar, Mauritius, Mallorca, the Faroe Islands and Iceland. Special considerations are required to develop a well-functioning and sustainable waste management system on an island.