Joint venture to invest in waste-to-energy in Africa

Astra Energy and Powertron Global announce the launch of a joint venture to invest in energy recovery in Africa. Astra already has a portfolio of projects, notably in the autonomous archipelago of Zanzibar in Tanzania and in Lesotho.

At a time when the African continent is crumbling under tons of waste, two American companies have decided to work together to exploit this potential for energy recovery. Astra Energy and Powertron Global have announced the launch of a joint venture to explore investment opportunities in Africa.

Astra Energy has made a name for itself in recent months by winning concessions in at least two African countries. The company, headed by Ron Loudoun, has reached an agreement with the authorities of the autonomous archipelago of Zanzibar in Tanzania for the conversion into energy of300 tonnes of municipal solid waste per day to generate 50 MW of electricity on the main island of Unguja. The electricity generated will be sold to the state-owned Zanzibar Electricity Corporation (Zeco), starting in 2025.

Triple impact

In Lesotho, Astra aims to develop 100 MW of capacity, including waste-to-energy conversion. The partnership with Powerton covers these two projects in Eastern and Southern Africa. The new joint venture will be 40% owned by Astra " and $5 million in cash in exchange for the contribution of its waste-to-energy technology. waste-to-energy technology", says the San Diego, California-based company.

According to Astra, the projects developed by the new joint venture "will make it possible to treat the waste accumulated in many regions, produce supplementary energy, improve the reliability of our products and services, and reduce the environmental impact of our operations". reliability of the electricity supply essential to a growing economy, and reduce carbon emissions". According to Australian researcher Carlito Baltazar Tabelin, the annual volume of waste generated in sub-Saharan Africa rose from 81 million tonnes to 174 million tonnes per year between 2012 and 2016, and is expected to reach 269 million tonnes by 2030.

In 2018, municipal solid waste collection coverage in Sub-Saharan Africa was estimated at 44%. Waste-to-energy solutions could encourage collection and, above all, reduce the pressure on landfills such as Kibele in Zanzibar, where 120 tonnes of waste are dumped on average every day.

Source: www.afrik21.africa/