Madurai wants Rs 314 crore waste-to-energy project for sustainable waste management

With a view to manage its waste more scientifically, the Madurai Corporation has tendered a proposal worth ₹314 crore to the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) for the construction of a waste-to-energy plant. The project has been proposed to be built near the Vellaikal dumpyard.

Madurai Corp has kept the project is part of the CITIIS (City Investments to Innovate, Integrate, and Sustain) 2.0 scheme, an initiative of MoHUA. The corporation has already finalized the detailed project report (DPR) and identified a site near the Vellaikal dumpyard for the plant.

As per reports, a MoHUA team inspected the site last week, signalling progress in the approval process.

Madurai is one of 18 cities chosen to receive funding under the CITIIS scheme, which is supported by the French Development Agency (AFD), Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW), the European Union (EU), and the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA).

In May 2023, the corporation submitted a set of proposals valued at ₹375 crore under the CITIIS initiative to enhance the city’s solid waste management infrastructure. The proposal focuses on biogas, waste-to-energy, material recovery facilities, and landfill management, with ₹135 crore specifically allocated for the waste-to-energy plant.

As per reports, the plant will convert wet waste into pellets to generate electricity, providing a sustainable solution to the city’s growing solid waste problem. The project also has the potential to generate revenue for the corporation.

The Madurai Corporation expect the waste to energy project to be approved within the next month or two, after which tenders will be issued. The construction is expected to take around three to four years.

Recently, the Tiruchi City Corporation also revealed to set up a bio-CNG plant with Rs 35 crore at the Ariyamangalam dump yard, with the capacity to process about 100 tonnes of organic waste daily.