Question 1

Who is MVV?

Accepted Answer

MVV Environment is part of the MVV Energie group of companies, providing environmentally friendly, sustainable, and efficient solutions for waste-fired energy generation to publicly and privately-owned waste disposal companies as well as to Local Authorities.

The UK business retains the overall group ethos of ‘belonging’ to the communities we serve whilst benefitting from over 50 years’ experience gained by our German sister companies. In Germany, MVV Umwelt operates six Energy from Waste and biomass plants, managing 1.6 million tonnes of waste a year whilst in the UK, MVV currently consists of five separate companies:

MVV Environment Limited – the UK development company and core business support functions
MVV Environment Baldovie – diverting 220,000 tonnes per annum of residual waste from landfill for Dundee City and Angus Councils
MVV Environment Devonport – diverting up to 265,000 tonnes per annum of residual waste from landfill for the Southwest Devon Waste Partnership
MVV Environment Ridham – generating energy from up to 195,000 tonnes per annum of waste wood that would otherwise be landfilled or exported for energy generation abroad
MVV Environment Services – the UK electricity trading subsidiary of MVV

Question 2

How big is MVV? Are they financially sound?

Accepted Answer

With currently around 6,000 employees and consolidated sales of 4 billion Euro (financial year 2018), MVV Energie AG is Germany's largest publicly listed municipality network. Majority shareholder of MVV is the City of Mannheim, thus guaranteeing the company's stability.

Question 3

What is MVV's vision for the UK?

Accepted Answer

MVV Environment aims to replicate the success of MVV Umwelt in the Energy from Waste sector in the UK. The EfW plant at Mannheim, built in 1964 and continuously modernised since then, produces around 300,000 MWh of energy and 400,000 MWh of process steam annually. It has the capacity to process around 700,000 tonnes of non-recyclable waste every year. Furthermore, almost no household waste in Germany is landfilled anymore with the majority being recycled (about 66%) and the rest being treated in EfW Plants (about 34%). Although waste management practices in the UK have improved greatly in recent years, large amounts of waste are still being sent to landfill; In 2016, the UK generated 222.9 million tonnes of waste with about 24% of this waste being sent to landfill.

For more information on UK’s statistics on waste, please click here.

MVV brings forth their wealth of first-hand experience of operating high efficiency EfW facilities to the UK in order to decrease, as much as possible, the amount of household waste being sent to landfill.

Question 4

What is MVV’s record on health and safety?

Accepted Answer

With more than 50 years’ experience of operating EfW and biomass plants, MVV is committed to the highest levels of safety. Both MVV Umwelt and its subsidiary MVV O&M have been accredited to the standards of BS OHSAS 18001 (British Standard Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series). High levels of safety are also reflected in the fact that reportable work-related accidents (those which result in an employee being absent from work for at least three days) are well below the industry average. In Germany, the average accident rate per 1,000 full-time employees between 2005 and 2010 was about 12.5 for MVV Umwelt and its subsidiaries, which was some 40% below the industry average of between 18.4 and 19.7.

MVV constantly reviews accidents or potentially dangerous situations in order to improve its safety record. MVV applies the same high standards in the UK as it does in Germany.

Question 5

What makes MVV qualified to operate this kind of plant in Dundee?

Accepted Answer

MVV has over 50 years' experience in building and operating waste management plants in Germany and is one of the top three companies in Germany in its field.

In Germany MVV operates five EfW and Biomass plants, treating 1.6 million tonnes of waste and biomass a year. MVV Umwelt currently works with 19 municipalities and districts in five federal states, managing and disposing of the waste of around 4 million people across Germany.

MVV's EfW plants have mostly Combined Heat and Power (CHP) and district heating schemes, so the company brings first-hand experience of operating high efficiency EfW facilities to Dundee. MVV O&M is experienced in the fields of design, planning, construction and operation as well as the maintenance of power plants.

Question 6

Which Environmental Standards does MVV follow?

Accepted Answer

EfW plants must comply with current legislation. The EU has set very strict limits on the environmental impact of plants over the past decade. The Waste Incineration Directive (WID) applies the same standards to all sites within the EU. All MVV's EfW plants operate well within these limits, with air emissions at only a fraction of the legal limit. This information is freely available as it is published weekly on MVV's website.

In Scotland we are governed by the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA).

Question 7

How is the waste incinerated?

Accepted Answer

Lines 1 and 2 utilise a fluidised bed mechanism

A bed of heated inert sand particles is used to transfer heat to the waste that is to be incinerated in a fluidized bed incinerator. The bed rests on a perforated metal plate called a distributor plate and heated air is pumped from the underside of the plate, through the perforations, into the bed. The air bubbles through the particles causing it to act as a fluid, thus the name “fluidized” bed incinerator. Both the waste and the bed are enclosed in the combustion chamber which we refer to as the boiler.

Line 3 utilises a moving grate technology

Today, grate combustion is the most advanced technology regarding environmental friendliness, operating reliability, flexibility, and cost-effectiveness.

Residual waste is delivered to site in a variety of vehicles which pass over the weighbridge before being directed to the waste reception hall. Here the waste is discharged into a storage bunker. Overhead grab cranes then blend the waste to even out any variances in its calorific value (energy content). The same cranes then load the waste into a feed hopper, from where it is then fed onto the main combustion grate.

All combustion air is drawn from within the waste reception hall, which means that any odour arising from the waste is kept inside the plant.

Once the waste has been loaded into the feed hopper it moves down the feed chute and onto the feed table. Feed rams then push the waste onto the combustion grate. The grate is comprised of rows of inclined bars that move the waste material through the combustion zones whilst aerating it to provide optimum combustion conditions.

During the boiler start-up sequence, the process will use auxiliary diesel burners to bring the furnace up to a minimum permitted operating temperature of 850°C. Once this temperature is achieved, waste can be loaded onto the grate and the process becomes self-sustaining. At this point the diesel burners are no longer needed.

The waste passes through four distinct combustion zones as it moves down the grate i.e. drying, ignition, main combustion, and burnout.

At the end of the grate the ash drops into an ash extractor. This contains a quench bath which cools the hot ash and acts as an air seal for the furnace. The extractor slowly moves the cool ash onto a series of conveyors which take the ash to another storage bunker. On the way, the ash passes under a magnet which separates any ferrous metals contained within the ash.

The ash is called Incinerator Bottom Ash (IBA) and this is then taken off site for processing.

Question 8

Energy Recovery

Accepted Answer

The furnace walls surrounding the grate contain a series of pipes through which flowing water captures the energy from the heat, eventually turning it to steam which is used to drive the turbine. The furnace walls are covered in thermal tiles that in addition to protecting the pipes, allow the efficient transfer of heat.

The steam then travels to the turbine hall where it drives the turbine. The turbine in turn then drives the generator which produces the electricity which we export to the National Grid.

After the energy from the steam has been used to drive the turbine the steam then moves through to the Air-Cooled Condenser where it is condensed back into water. This water is then pumped back into the boiler and turned back into steam to drive the turbine, and so the cycle continues.

Question 9

What measures have been taken to combat pollution i.e. noise, odour?

Accepted Answer

There will be little external noise from the operation of the plant. Mostly, operational noise will not be heard above the general background noise. As part of the planning application determination process, noise surveys have been undertaken to ensure that MVV complies with Dundee City Council and SEPA’s guidelines on noise.

The plant does not smell outside as waste will be unloaded inside the building into a bunker. This area is kept at a slightly negative pressure, so that any smells are contained inside the building. Combustion air is drawn from this area, so that any odours are sucked into the furnace and effectively burned. The flue gas from the stack is odourless.

Question 10

If it operates 24/7, will not light or traffic disturb residents?

Accepted Answer

Although the plant will operate 24 hours a day, the waste lorries will not deliver 24 hours a day. Delivery times will be from 8:00 am to 7:00 pm and will be agreed with the planning authority, considering existing traffic flows, school hours, etc. External lighting will also be designed to be unobtrusive to neighbouring properties.

Question 11

How many tonnes of waste are burnt in MEB?

Accepted Answer

We incinerated approximately 160,000 tonnes of waste in 2021. The additional tonnage of municipal solid waste received can be attributed to the commissioning process of the line 3. Under optimal operating conditions, we burn approximately 600 tonnes of waste per day, 7 days a week.

Question 12

During outage, where does the waste go?

Accepted Answer

Ordinarily to landfill (and again ordinarily to Lower Melville Wood at Ladybank, Fife) but sometimes we can get an RDF outlet (export to Europe or other EfW in Scotland).

Question 13

What is EfW?

Accepted Answer

Energy from Waste (or EfW) is the generation of electricity and/or usable heat from non-recyclable waste that would otherwise go to landfill in the UK, or be transported to other countries as ‘Refuse Derived Fuel’ which is then burned to generate electricity and/or heat overseas.

The heat from the burning waste is used to boil water and generate steam which turns a turbine to drive a generator.

Question 14

What are the benefits of an EfW plant?

Accepted Answer

In environmental terms, non-recyclable waste is treated as a resource, with energy being recovered from it. Dependence on landfill is reduced and the release of methane (a harmful greenhouse gas) and leachate (a toxic liquid) from landfill is avoided.

It provides a safe and well proven means of dealing with household waste that cannot be reused, recycled, or composted. This waste is called residual waste. The use of EfW will reduce the amount of rubbish sent to landfill to help the environment, meet Government targets and avoid landfill tax.

Economically, EfW utilises a resource that would otherwise be buried, to produce energy in the form of electricity and/or heat. Generating both at the same time to be used in a process called CHP (combined heat and power) is the most efficient way of using residual waste. In terms of energy content, one tonne of waste equals roughly one-third of a tonne of coal. It is estimated that up to 4 per cent of the UK's electricity needs could be met by EfW, reducing the need for fossil fuels and the more harmful emission of greenhouse gases from landfill.

Question 15

What is CHP?

Accepted Answer

Combined Heat and Power (CHP) means that we produce steam for heating, as well as generating electricity. This increases the efficiency of the facility by increasing the amount of energy we can put to good use from the residual waste that we burn.

Question 16

How many EfW plants are currently in operation?

Accepted Answer

There are more than 430 EfW plants operating in the EU alone, with 20 in the UK and more planned.

Question 17

Isn't incineration outdated technology?

Accepted Answer

Uncontrolled incineration of waste was old technology. Modern EfW plants use the latest technology to ensure both heat and steam can be gainfully used from the process, and that emissions are cleaned before release to the atmosphere. There is no comparison between modern, well-run and monitored EfW plants and old incinerators. Modern biomass fired power plants also use the same modern technology.

Baldovie EfW CHP Facility: Your questions answered

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