Germany has created a wide range of very strict recycling standards. The country though, still produces huge volumes of waste that are unable to be recycled, i.e. they cannot be processed for re-use. The most sensible and environmentally friendly way of dealing with such waste is to send it for incineration. Such plants are able to use this material to generate electricity – a regenerative source of energy – contributing towards Germany’s goal to switch from fossil to renewable fuels. By thermally treating waste, GMVA generates sufficient electricity to cover the requirements of around 100,000 households in Oberhausen. Moreover, GMVA’s combined heat and power technology supplies a significant proportion of the district heat needed by the city.
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GMVA collaborates with businesses well beyond the city borders thanks to its plant’s capacities and its state-of-the-art technology, which complies with the most stringent of environmental standards. It treats waste from the cities of Oberhausen and Duisburg as well as from the districts of Kleve, Steinfurt and Coesfeld. In addition, it processes pre-treated commercial waste supplied by REMONDIS – one of the world’s largest recycling, service and water companies – from across the whole of the country.
Besides generating electricity, GMVA also produces district heat. This is fed into the local network and supplied to a large number of businesses and private households. Thanks to the heat generated by GMVA, the demand for heating oil is reduced by between 15 and 25 million litres a year (depending on local heating requirements).
> Facts & Figures | |
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Volumes treated | 650,000 bis 700,000 t/a |
Steam generation | 2,200,000 t/a |
Total electricity generation | 430,000 MWh/a |
Electricity used by the plant | 78,000 MWh/a |
Electricity fed into the grid | 315,000 bis 340,000 MWh/a |
Volume of district heat | 50,000 bis 150,000 MWh/a |
Mean calorific value of the waste | 10,500 kJ/kg |
Volume of bottom ash | 170,000 t/a |
GMVA was a fully publicly owned company until 2001. Since then, it has been operated as a Public Private Partnership. It is owned by the City of Oberhausen (via the shareholders STOAG) and the City of Duisburg (via the shareholders Wirtschaftsbetriebe Duisburg – AöR) as well as by the recycling company REMONDIS. Thanks to its waste management and recycling know-how, REMONDIS plays an important role in ensuring the plant is run cost effectively, safely and efficiently.