Ciba seeks landfill power
Published 10:20 pm Friday, January 9, 2009
Suffolk City Council is set to consider a conditional use permit for a “green energy” structure in Suffolk when it convenes Jan. 21.
The $26 million cogeneration power plant — which would be located at Ciba Corporation, a chemical company located on Wilroy Road — would be the first of its kind in Virginia if approved. The project received praise and a recommendation for approval at a Planning Commission meeting in December.
The cogeneration facility would capture gases — mostly methane — produced by the decomposing trash in the regional landfill. It then would pipe the gas about two miles away, to the Ciba site, where turbines would convert it into heat and electricity.
About 30 percent of the electricity produced would be enough to power Ciba’s chemical operation and administration building. The remaining electricity would be sold onto the grid.
The heat produced would provide steam to power Ciba’s chemical operations. Ciba’s Suffolk site produces chemicals used in a variety of consumer products, from soap and laundry detergent to shampoo and paper.
Although the turbines used in the conversion are large and noisy, the machine will be enclosed in a soundproof chamber, and will not be visible from the road, according to a Ciba spokeswoman.
“It won’t be impacting our community,” said Beth Earnst, director of communications and public affiairs for Ciba. “We work hard to be a good corporate citizen. We aren’t going to cause any harm or problem to them.”
Despite the Planning Commission’s recommendation for approval, Ciba and General Power Corporation, the supplier of the cogeneration plant, must still negotiate the minefield of the Southeastern Public Service Authority. Because SPSA — the debt-ridden solid waste disposal authority — owns the landfill and stands to make money off the deal, negotiations are continuing with SPSA.
Ciba has used landfill gases for more than a decade to fire the boilers and generate steam, Earnst said. However, this new facility would generate power, as well.
“It’s a fabulous environmental project,” Earnst said. “That landfill’s going to generate methane for a lot of years to come.”