Italian firm to invest 40m Euros in waste recycling plant in Nigeria

The era of waste materials littering major cities in Nigeria may soon be over as an Italian firm, Management Environmental Finance (MEFIN), has indicated interest to invest 40 million Euros in a recycling plant in Calabar, the Cross River State capital as a pilot scheme that is billed to go round the country.

In a presentation at the Governor’s office, in Calabar at the weekend, the leader of MEFIN, Mr. Chinedu Okpalama, accompanied by other Italians, disclosed that the project will soon be replicated in urban cities in Nigeria having solid wastes, that would be recycled into raw materials for other industrial uses.

The wastes will also be converted into renewable energy in some states with no funding from the government.

He said the European-based outfit would take over all financing and utilization of the products to be generated from the project.

Okpalama said: “It will cost Cross River nothing to install the plant as the company is committed to using the state as its pilot for the establishment of the plant in Nigeria and it is going to invest 40 million Euros initial fund.

“The proposed facility will have the capacity to treat 500,000 tonnes per year of municipal solid waste which when fully built, will run for 7920 hours per year as well as produce 4.2mw of energy per hour.”

He also stated that the plant will among other benefits, create over 700 direct jobs from collection to energy generation and an extra 1,500 indirect jobs from commercial activities associated with the operations of the plant.

The team leader said that 70 per cent of wastes generated in the country are either dumped or burnt, a situation which threatens life and environment, adding that MEFIN was ready to recycle 100 percent of every waste collected.

The implication is that many jobs will be created as there will be many scouting for the wastes from the immediate environment where the recycling plants will be sited, which will end the era of having unhealthy environment as a result dumping of wastes.

According to the delegation, “There is no waste that cannot be degraded, including metals, which could be converted into various aspect of energy for the production of electricity, while the final products from the decomposition of the metals could also be used for construction work.”

Okpalama who hinted that the firm intends to bring in 100 specialised trucks for waste collection, if the project is given a nod, also appealed for a land mass of 100 hectares for the plant, for the waste collection and management.

In his comment, the Cross River Governor, Prof Ben Ayade, said: “Our state is very smart enough to know when a thing is fake, this one is good and your choice for Cross River for the pilot project is apt.”

He said that the commissioners for Power, Lands and Environment, had been mandated to fast track the processes for the take off of the project.

The Governor also pledged that the state would provide the needed 100 hectares of land for the take off of the project.

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