Once the project is completed, it is expected the Mugga Lane landfill gas facility will have capacity to power up to 10,800 homes.
The ACT Government is driving a circular economy by expanding landfill gas capture at the Mugga Lane landfill.
This will reduce emissions and provide reliable renewable energy that could power up to 10,800 homes each year.
It is happening through the expansion of a partnership with Australian owned and operated clean energy engineers, LGI Limited (LGI), which will deliver a landfill gas expansion project.
The project builds upon a successful three-year program. It will further enhance capabilities for capturing harmful methane emissions generated at Mugga Lane landfill and transforming it into reliable renewable energy for the ACT.
“Emissions from landfills without biogas management systems can be a significant problem and can contribute up to 80 per cent of a local government’s carbon footprint,” LGI Founder and Managing Director Adam Bloomer said.
The Government’s priority is to reduce and recycle organic food waste to divert it from landfill, minimising harmful waste emissions. Capturing the emissions created by the organic material that does end up in landfill, however, is also key.
“The ACT Government’s carbon cutting approach of using proven, cost-effective technologies to capture and abate the harmful methane emissions from Mugga Lane and generate reliable, dispatchable (24/7) renewable energy is an example of what progressive governments can achieve by prioritising the environment,” Adam said.
The expansion project will include the establishment of two additional 1 Megawatt gas to energy generators, an additional 12 Megawatt of battery storage and a 20 Megawatt grid connection with Evoenergy.
Once the project is completed, it is expected the Mugga Lane landfill gas facility will have capacity to generate 50,000 Megawatt hours of dispatchable energy.
This is enough energy to power up to 10,800 homes in the ACT each year.
Adding the battery system will provide storage capacity and rapid dispatch of the renewable energy generated by the engines, at times when the grid needs it most.
As part of the LGI partnership, the ACT has been able to reduce carbon emissions by 764,000 tonnes, over the past three years.
More than 80 million3 of biogas has been captured at Mugga Lane, allowing for 96 Gigawatt hours of renewable energy to be generated.
The Mugga Lane site upgrades will further enhance this.
The project will see two additional full-time positions employed on the site and significant investment into the local economy through the engagement of local contractors for everything from concreting to catering.
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