South West Devon Waste Partnership has submitted its final business case for the three authorities of Devon County Council, Plymouth and Torbay Councils to consider prior to Defra approval.
The partnership has selected MVV Umwelt as its preferred bidder, which is proposing to build an energy from waste facility at North Yard in Devonport. The facility would deal with waste from the partnership area, using the heat and electricity generated to meet the needs of the Dockyard with any surplus electricity sold into the national grid.
A presentation on the final business case will come before specially convened cabinet committees of each council, which are being held in public on the 7th February across the region. All three councils have different constitutions, but the decision making procedure will be the same in each case.
The authorities will be shown that MVV’s proposed solution in the final business case is well within the each authority’s original approved estimate. The committees will be asked to confirm their acceptance so that the final business case can be formally submitted to Defra. The final business case is an official document written for Defra, which provides information about all aspects of the project, including legal, commercial, environmental, economic, and technological elements.
To enable a fair and equitable decision making process across the three authorities, and to ensure the public are informed, the business case will be presented to the Councils with commercially sensitive information removed. Defra’s approval of the final business case is required as it will award the partnership £95million of PFI financial support towards the project – thus providing savings for local council tax charge payers.
Chair of the South West Devon Waste Partnership, Torbay Councillor Dave Butt said: “We have been working together as three authorities for over three years to decide what to do with our waste. We have to stop burying it in the ground, and even with increased recycling, there will still be some waste that needs treatment. The solution proposed by MVV is innovative and using heat from day one gives it a huge environmental and economic advantage.
“We have been clear that we want the public to be informed about our proposals. Working in partnership has brought us many benefits, and helped us share expertise. It does, however, make the decision making process a little more complex, but by holding three cabinet meetings across the patch, each authority can contribute to the collective decision.”
Mark Turner, SWDWP Project Director said: “We are very pleased to recommend the final business case to the partner Councils for their approval and show that the partner Authorities have met or exceeded the targets set out in the outline business case approved in 2008. It also includes details of MVV’s innovative solution which will exceed the Partnerships economic and environmental sustainability objectives.
“Copies of the final business case are being made publicly available, but without the key commercial aspects. In 2008, Councillors agreed budget limits for the project, so we are asking them to confirm that the project is within these limits.
“As part of our ongoing communications, we are holding roadshows during February to bring the public up to date with the latest developments on our project, and to listen to people’s views. The summarised business case is also on our website with much more information about the project: www.swdwp.co.uk.
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