Waste-to-Energy plant to throng Andhra Pradesh: Urban Development Minister

To combat the challenge of waste generation and clear the legacy waste in the municipalities, the state government of Andhra Pradesh will be establishing two new waste-to-energy plants in Nellore and Kakinada cities. This has been informed by the state’s Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister Ponguru Narayana. He also held that efforts are already underway to clear the legacy waste accumulated in dumping yards across the state over the past five years.

The minister stated that the electricity department has been tasked with overseeing the development of these facilities. He disclosed that tenders will soon be issued for setting up the waste-to-energy plants in strategic locations between Nellore and Gudur, and Kakinada and Rajahmundry.

Narayana further revealed plans to explore the establishment of a similar waste-to-energy plant in the Kadapa-Anantapur-Kurnool region to serve the local bodies in that area.

Ponguru Narayana had recently announced that under the state government’s broader vision, the current administration plans to set up 13 waste management plants, one in each of the state’s erstwhile districts, after studying advanced waste-processing technologies in Singapore and Tokyo.

The minister apprised that Andhra Pradesh currently generates approximately 6,890 metric tonnes of solid waste daily. Of this, 2,169 metric tonnes—31% of the total—is processed at two existing waste-to-energy plants in Guntur and Visakhapatnam. The Guntur facility alone handles 1,200 metric tonnes of waste daily from the municipal corporations of Guntur and Vijayawada, as well as municipalities like Tenali, Narasaraopet, Chilakaluripet, and Bapatla.

The minister inspected the Jindal Urban Waste Management Limited plant in Guntur. He explained that with the addition of the proposed plants in Kakinada and Nellore, the state would be able to process 52% of the waste generated daily. Once the Kadapa-Anantapur-Kurnool plant becomes operational, the state aims to process 70% of its daily waste.

“Our government has already cleared 45 lakh metric tonnes of legacy waste and is committed to eliminating the remaining 40 lakh metric tonnes by October 2, 2025,” Narayana affirmed.

Jaipur too to get a new waste to energy plant

In a key development Jindal Urban Waste Management Company (JUWMC) has signed an MoU with Jaipur Municipal Corporation (JMC) to set up a waste-to-energy project in the pink city with an investment of about Rs 350 crore to process nearly 1,000 tonnes of waste daily in the facility.