Alberta announces $2.8M toward plant to turn waste into electricity

The Alberta government has announced $2.8 million in funding toward a facility that would use carbon capture to turn municipal waste into clean electricity.

The funding was announced by the minister of environment and protected areas on Tuesday morning at the Carbon Capture Canada conference held in Edmonton.

“Alberta is a global leader in carbon capture, utilization and storage technology, and the best place for innovative projects like this one to thrive,” Rebecca Schulz said.

The money will be directed toward a $6.1-million engineering and design study led by Varme Energy, for a project planned in Alberta’s Industrial Heartland near Edmonton.

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“Varme Energy is tapping into our province’s exceptional geology, workforce and expertise to advance a landfill elimination solution that will reduce emissions and continue Alberta’s reputation for delivering clean, secure energy to the world,” Schulz said.

The province said operations are expected to begin in 2027. The facility would convert solid waste from municipal landfills into electricity for the grid. The captured carbon would be injected into one of Alberta’s carbon sequestration hubs, according to the province. The facility is expected to capture and store about 185,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide each year.

The province’s $2.8 million comes from Emissions Reduction Alberta, a fund industry players pay into to offset their emissions.

“The study is an important first step to realizing a large-scale municipal waste-to-energy facility with carbon capture and storage,” Emissions Reduction Alberta CEO Justin Riemer said in a news release. “This project not only reduces emissions, but also sets a new standard for how we provide clean, reliable energy from waste destined for landfills.”

The province said currently, landfills account for 23 per cent of methane emissions in Canada and less than three per cent of municipal waste is currently being converted into energy.

The study is expected to be complete by the end of this year with construction slated to begin next year.