Saudi Arabia generates electricity from biogas at Ahsa landfill

AL-AHSA — The Municipality of Al-Ahsa has started a project to produce electricity from biogas at an old landfill in this Eastern Province city.

Mayor of Al-Ahsa Eng. Essam Al-Mulla said the project was the first of its kind in the Kingdom.

He said when fully operational the plant would have a capacity to produce 560 kilowatts of electricity, which would contribute to the lighting of the public road leading to the landfill, in addition to powering the existing buildings in the area, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.

The municipality, represented by the Services Agency, started operating the project to transform biogas into electrical energy.

“The project is the outcome of the objectives of the municipality to take care of the environment, as well as to provide alternative energy and achieve investment returns, in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030. The municipality plans to rehabilitate the old landfill,” the mayor said.

Al-Mulla said the municipality discussed with investors in waste management and recycling stations ways to benefit from energy generated by the plant to run their stations.

“The project aims to support the municpality's strategies for preserving environment through sanitary landfill techniques, inclduing simulation of the elements with the latest equipment in the engineering cell system. These cells will form a layer that prevents the leakage of leachate to the subsoil and its mixing with groundwater,” he said, while highlighting the significance of the project in view of the population growth and the high rate of garbage accumulation in the future.

“The project comes as part of achieving the vision of the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing under the Kingdom’s National Transformation Program,” Al-Mulla added.