Swiss plant engineering company Hitachi Zosen Inova (HZI) is set to begin work on the expansion of Zürich's waste to energy plant. Under a contract with the city's waste management company ERZ (Entsorgung + Recycling Zurich), HZI is to be responsible for the planning, construction and commissioning of a third incineration line for the Hagenholz energy from waste (EfW) plant. Commissioning is planned for the end of 2026, HZI said yesterday, when it announced that it had received notice to proceed with the contract.
Located near Zurich Airport, the Hagenholz waste to energy (wte) plant has been in operation since 1969. Its two original incineration lines were replaced, one in 2008 and the second 2010, as part of modernisation works. In addition to generating electricity, the plant supplies Zurich's district heating system. The citizens recently approved a loan of CHF330m for the expansion of the heating network.
The addition of a third incineration line and a fifth boiler to the Hagenholz plant will increase the waste facility's processing capacity by 120,000 tonnes per year, or 50 per cent. The higher throughput will enable the plant to produce an additional 48 MW of thermal energy, more than doubling the energy fed into the city's district heating network, as well as increasing the amount of electricity the plant generates.
“HZI is extremely proud to have been awarded this important contract by [EZR]. It will enable more residual waste to be treated at the Hagenholz site, which has been processing waste for over 50 years,” said Fabio Dinale, executive vice president business development at HZI. He noted that the enlargement of the plant contributes to ensuring the continuity Zurich's energy supply. More metals would also be recovered in Switzerland from recycling activities. HZI said that the new, larger Hagenholz facility would be " a catalyst in terms of extending the city’s district heating grid."
