Switzerland-based power and automation giant ABB Ltd. ABB has won a contract from the leading energy-from-waste (EfW) engineering, procurement and construction ("EPC") contractor Hitachi Zosen Inova. The deal requires ABB to supply a comprehensive electrical and control solution for two of the firm’s waste-to-energy plants. Severnside Energy Recovery Centre, based in England, and another Poland-based waste-to-energy plant will deploy ABB’s technology to improve their waste management standards and generate electricity. The plants are scheduled to commence operation in 2016.
Inside the Headlines
ABB’s Symphony Plus platform offers a highly advanced and integrated control system that provides great flexibility during combustion, thereby making it a perfect pick for Hitachi’s waste-to-energy plants. ABB is responsible for securing maximum safety and minimum waste generation during the process. Additionally, it will ensure significant reduction in adverse environmental effect from fuel gas released during combustion.
Construction of the Severnside facility comes as part of West London Waste Authority’s efforts to develop an alternative to dumping waste in landfills. Once completed, London’s newest facility will have an installed electrical capacity of 37 megawatts (MW) that will be able to treat 400,000 metric tons of municipal solid waste annually. Severnside will then be able to light 50,000 UK households, thus greatly boosting the city’s electrical infrastructure.
Similarly, Ponzan in Poland, like most other cities of the country, remains committed toward meeting the stringent national as well as European environmental standards regarding waste disposal. The new plant in Ponzan, equipped to treat 210,000 metric tons of waste that can create an electrical capacity of 18 MW, is also expected to power thousands of household in the city.
Bottom Line
The latest order is in sync with ABB’s long-term vision of creating a better world with the help of sustainable solutions. The company’s electrical and automation solutions are well-equipped to add to the value chain of these projects, starting from engineering and project execution to life cycle support. ABB’s success in supporting waste-to-energy plants, supported by its state-of-the-art technology, is clearly manifested through its growing footprint in leading global cities like Berlin, London, Vienna and Singapore.
According to company sources, generation of municipal solid waste has increased to 1.3 billion tons from 700 million tons within 1990–2010. While rapid growth in population and urbanization continues to cripple the capacity of landfill disposal, waste generation is predicted to reach 2.2 billion tons by 2025, which will worsen the scenario.
Such bleak statistics, coupled with the increasing focus of European countries on raising their waste disposal standards, makes the waste-to-energy industry a lucrative choice for firms like ABB. We believe ABB, with its competence in generating safe and cost-efficient renewable energy, stands unparalleled. As governments of more and more European nations begin to adhere to the environmental norms, ABB’s business prospects will likely improve.
ABB currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Better-ranked stocks in the broader industrial goods sector include II-VI Incorporated IIVI, Dycom Industries Inc. DY and Capstone Turbine Corp. CPST. While II-VI Incorporated and Dycom Industries sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Capstone Turbine holds a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
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