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Cahill Energy:The Race to Waste Energy

Submitted by Pachamama After more than 20 years, the government of Barbados has finally made an attempt to address municipal waste management. While the present government must be encouraged in this effort, we have some concerns. First, we happened to have led a group that over a decade ago that made a stream of proposals…

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Submitted by Pachamama
L-R): Edison Alleyne (Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Environment), Margot Harvey (Chairman, Sanitation Service Authority), Dr Denis Lowe (Minister of Environment), Clare Cowan (CEO of Cahill Energy), Christopher Sinckler (Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs), Denis Kellman (Minister of Housing, Lands and Rural Development), Senator Darcy Boyce (Minister of Energy in the Office of the Prime Minister) - Caribbean News

L-R): Edison Alleyne (Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Environment), Margot Harvey (Chairman, Sanitation Service Authority), Dr Denis Lowe (Minister of Environment), Clare Cowan (CEO of Cahill Energy), Christopher Sinckler (Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs), Denis Kellman (Minister of Housing, Lands and Rural Development), Senator Darcy Boyce (Minister of Energy in the Office of the Prime Minister) – Caribbean News

 

 

After more than 20 years, the government of Barbados has finally made an attempt to address municipal waste management. While the present government must be encouraged in this effort, we have some concerns. First, we happened to have led a group that over a decade ago that made a stream of proposals to government/s. We also know others who  made such proposal. In none of these cases there was no response.

Secondly, we are concerned that the technology that government is seeking to bring to the country has suffered from a generalized adaptation failure. There are few plants, of industrial scale, in operation. The technology still has certain problems which need to be sorted out. We would have preferred to see a more widely used technology.

Thirdly, there is insufficient information to appraise this deal. That insufficiency leaves one to rely on belief in popular pleadings instead of logic as government commits to a stream of payments over 30 years plus tipping fees. At least!

Fourthly, that one of the ‘national shareholders’ is not evident suggests that the email sent to a significant international player of confidence that the contract was a done deal could have been overly ambitious, foiled by an election or exposes the capabilities of certain minute men.

Related Link: Barbados government signs agreement for $240 million clean energy plant

178 responses to “Cahill Energy:The Race to Waste Energy”

  1. David Avatar
    David

    The Arawak Cement plant fiasco exposes government’s insensitivity when it comes to matters of the environment. Here is the BU link to the Arawak matter.

    https://barbadosunderground.wordpress.com/2014/02/10/living-with-arawak-cement-dust/

  2. ac Avatar
    ac

    all this uproar about the burning of garbage,,,,,most people at some time have burnt garbage openly,the only difference now is that technology has given us a better and cleaner way to rid our environment of garbage and save money but some so called gladiator environmentalist of the day makes it seems as if the average person cannot understand or relate to the scientific and environmental relevance,,,,,

  3. ac Avatar
    ac

    david that is not proof or evidence relating to the dangers of WTE plants..however u can read this scientific evidence from the NEW YORK TIMES about WTE and its performance and cost BTW stop listening to that rabble rouser Kammie Holder…..he knows absolutely nothing about WTE plants ,,he never visited one only heard of them .i bet he doesn.t know how many exist worlld wide and when was first WTE plant estabished and in which country,,,,he does not even understand the burning of garbage traditionally used to rid the enviroment of excessive trash emitted dixions in the air, now that a cleaner and better way is being used for the same purpose he kicks up dust in the air,,,

    http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/13/science/earth/13trash.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

  4. Bush Tea Avatar
    Bush Tea

    @ ac
    Why don’t you go long back to Arizona or where ever um is yuh went nuh….? Shiite man you like you worse than Dompey after all… yuh…

    Can you tell us exactly which DLP jackass would have signed off on this stupid deal to spend $500M that we don’t have …..to buy a garbage burning plant that is based on UNTESTED technology?

    Can you tell us why our plant will cost half BILLION dollars when the RICH Chinese are buying a plant half our size for US$15M

    Can you tell us why little Barbados would want to buy a plant TWICE the size that BIG DONKEY China is buying…?

    Why are we buying this shiite from a NEW Company which seems to consist of only ONE retarded looking woman ….incorporated in a little mock island even smaller than Barbados…. and BREK as shiite..?

    How did they come up with the price?
    What happens if it don’t work?
    What are we paying for?

    Tell us ac….WHO SIGNED OFF?

    ….shiite woman…this is even MORE asinine than buying an abandoned hotel for $100M; paying to knock it down; building it back for $500M; ….and then GIVING it to a foreigner who was previously caught PISSING all over Paradise Beach…..

    YOU REALLY SUPPORTING THIS SHIITE AC?

    ….WHO ac?……Freundel?….. Sinckler? ….Boyce? WHO….?

  5. Prodigal Son Avatar
    Prodigal Son

    These brass bowls intend to sell out every …ite and Barbados to the highest white bidder! This from a party who always say that the BLP is the party of the white merchants.

    Wait, what has become of Cost u less?

  6. Prodigal Son Avatar
    Prodigal Son

    Look at this picture and it will tell you all you need to know! A white woman running deceitful rings around these brass bowls!

  7. ac Avatar
    ac

    look jackass,, bush tea………all dem question..can you tell me how much longer the brass bowls going pay high energy bill. do you have a better alternative in that constipated brass bowl brain of yours,,,,,,and yes do you not understand that cost and labour and do you not understand that many of the technology for the plants are designed in china and therefore china would have a better financial advantage for lesser cost and production of the plant,,,,,when are you going to pick that connstipated brass bowl brain of yours and say something sensible enough to catapult your feeble mind to bring it in tune with the 21st century,,,,button head…

  8. Bush Tea Avatar
    Bush Tea

    Button head…?
    LOL Ha Ha …that is a good one.

    Look ac, all jokes aside. You must see that these people doing shiite
    You REALLY think that at this time we should be getting into such nonsense?
    …and why the lack of openness?

    Just this once ac….you GOTTA cuss your party…. You HAFFA!!

  9. Ping Pong Avatar
    Ping Pong

    Could any minister of Government just announce that Barbados will be entering into a contract with a company that would say turn limestone into gold? Tell us that the company was “reputable”, just trust him and that with this gold Barbados will be enjoying financial prosperity for ever more! What rules govern the entering into contracts, agreements etc? There has to be rules even if these are not followed. Come on Opposition spot the light of required procedure on the actions of the Government or are you conveniently absconding from your responsibility in the hope that when your turn comes you too can carve up the fatted calf?

  10. Concerned Bajan Avatar
    Concerned Bajan

    Caribbean real estate specialists 7th Heaven Properties exclusively appointed by Cahill Energy to source sites across the Caribbean and Central America to build a $300 million (USD) plant to transform household waste into clean, renewable energy

    12 July 2013: London-based 7th Heaven Properties, specialists in residential and commercial Caribbean real estate, has been exclusively appointed by Cahill Energy to source and evaluate sites across the Caribbean Basin region to build a $300 million (USD) Waste to Energy plant utilising the most innovative technology available to transform all kinds of waste into clean, renewable energy.

    Cahill Energy, which was established to finance, build, own and operate utility-scale Waste to Energy plants in key markets, has appointed 7th Heaven Properties to initiate a search across the Caribbean islands and Central America for the ideal site which would provide a leading edge, environmentally sound solution to two of the region’s most pressing challenges: waste management and energy security.

    Landfill is currently the most commonly used waste disposal method in the Caribbean and Central America, but with waste generation rates rapidly rising as a result of population growth, urbanization and economic development, many landfill sites across the region are reaching capacity. With the Caribbean Basin region producing approximately 60 million tonnes of solid waste each year, Governments recognise that more efficient, sustainable and environmentally-friendly waste management and disposal solutions are required as a matter of urgency.

    Most Caribbean and Central American countries and territories also face an energy security challenge. Largely reliant on imported sources of fossil fuels to meet soaring demand for energy, they are vulnerable to fluctuating energy prices and struggling to meet renewable energy targets.

    Cahill Energy’s Waste to Energy technology represents a solution to both these challenges. Across Europe, where Waste to Energy goes hand in hand with waste minimisation and recycling initiatives, waste is commonly diverted away from landfill sites to about 400 plants in countries such as Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands. A continuous stream of new sites is coming on line in Europe, as well as China, Japan and India. Sweden has even begun importing garbage from neighbouring European countries which is transformed into clean, renewable energy to power homes.

    Cahill Energy plans to invest $300 million (USD) of its own funds in the development of a Waste to Energy plant utilising proven, patented Waste to Energy technology already in use in 4 commercial facilities worldwide; with additional plants under construction in the UK and China. Using plasma gasification technology (the most effective and environmentally friendly method of waste treatment available) the plant would transform almost all kinds of solid waste into clean, renewable energy, providing a new domestic energy source for the selected location and reducing reliance on imported fuel. Unlike landfill, incineration and other less efficient Waste to Energy technology in use elsewhere, plasma gasification produces almost zero emissions.

    Walter Zephirin, Managing Director of 7th Heaven Properties, commented: “We are delighted to have been appointed by Cahill Energy and to be working with Cahill on realising a clean, green solution to the Caribbean’s waste management and energy security challenges – issues of critical importance to sustainable development and economic growth in the Caribbean.”

    Clare Cowan CEO of Cahill Energy added: “I am delighted to be working closely with 7th Heaven Properties, our exclusive representative, to develop opportunities for us to invest in the Caribbean region. We consider that the Caribbean has considerable potential as it has both major challenges in reducing waste going to landfill and a recognised need for renewable energy.”

  11. ac Avatar
    ac

    Bush Tea | March 24, 2014 at 11:07 PM

    You REALLY think that at this time we should be getting into such nonsense?

    so when is it a good time… being pessimistic and avoid making the hard decisions is not the answer,,,,,,try unlocking that constipated brain of yours and look past all the negative and project your vision into a future,,,,,,i have yet to read any thing negative about the cahill group of investors from wall street to main street ,,bring more facts to prove that this company has swindled any business or group that they have worked with ,,then i would listen,,, for some people the sky would always be falling,,,even when it is clear as day it hasn;t moved an inch,

  12. Bush Tea Avatar
    Bush Tea

    @ ac
    “…..i have yet to read any thing negative about the cahill group of investors….”
    +++++++++++++
    ….Wuh shiite, Bushie have not read ANYTHING of substance about them either….
    ….seems that they just appeared from nowhere on some little shiite island with loose regulations…..
    ….they have NO DAMN MONEY, …..no history, no principals of substance – except for some jokey looking woman (dat is you ac ?)
    …they NEVER built anything yet
    …no one in government seems willing to take public ownership

    …but yet we are supposed to find money, land, resources to invest in this nonsense?
    You know how much will be spent on “studies”?… travel?….. consultants? …..Designs?
    …before they decide to scrap the obvious idiocy???

    ….Wuh we must be a bunch of brass bowl idiots….
    …..oh wait……WE ARE!!!! ….and some people know that.

    Well if you have 250,000 brass bowls at your disposal you can afford to piss all over them……

    @ Kammie
    You just like Caswell
    Heart in the right place but mouth in the wrong gear…

    This shiite is NOT about the technology. If you build a case on the technology argument you will lose and the baby will be dumped with the bath water….

    It is about IDIOCY.

    China WILL buy the $15M plant and it WILL be built for $15M…and it WILL work……
    ….because they are NOT brass bowls….they hire COMPETENT people to make technical decisions…and execute their donkey if they do shiite….

    WE will spend $400M – and end up just like Four Seasons / the Sugar Industry/ the 3S Fly Over scam / the Kensington White elephant etc…

    WHERE THERE IS NO VISION, THE BRASS BOWLS SUFFER…

  13. ac Avatar
    ac

    Bush Tea | March 25, 2014 at 8:20 AM

    This shiite is NOT about the technology. If you build a case on the technology argument you will lose and the baby will be dumped with the bath water….
    ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… so what are we talking about here ! not cost………old man and what are the products being bought by the govt to build the plant……..then should the govt just relinquish the technical aspect to save money ,,

  14. Kammie Holder Avatar
    Kammie Holder

    Chinese line up for bags of fresh air.

    (CNN) — Whatever the motive behind the event, it made for some powerful images of some China residents’ desperation for better air.
    Making the media rounds this week are photographs of residents of Zhengzhou, the capital of China’s Henan Province, lining up for a chance to breathe fresh mountain air via sealed bags.
    Some of the more heart-tugging photos were of parents and grandparents fixing the masks on children’s faces so they can have a few rare sniffs of the fresh O2.
    Zhengzhou is one of China’s worst cities for air pollution, ranking 10th in a Greenpeace list of the country’s most polluted cities in 2013, which used official data from the Ministry of Environmental Protection.
    At the time of writing, Zhengzhou’s AQI (Air Quality Index) recorded an “unhealthy” 157. Even Beijing, often the subject of bad pollution headlines, recorded a “moderate” AQI of 55 (the capital made headlines with its off-the-chart AQI reading of 755 last January).

    Zhengzhou is one of the worst cities in China for air pollution.
    New York recorded an AQI of 62.
    READ: Beijing pollution: Does it put you off traveling there?
    The late-March series of events were part clever travel marking gimmick, part public awareness campaign for China’s air pollution crisis, put on by Laojun Mountain Natural Reserve Development Co.
    The company brought in 2,000 cans and 40 bags of air that had been vacuum packed in Laojun Mountain, also located in Henan Province.
    “A TV crew came to Laojun Mountain to test the air and found it unbelievably good and we had the idea of doing this to promote tourism to the area,” sales and marketing officer for the park Khurram Zhang told CNN.
    Known for its fresh air, the mountain was designated a national nature reserve in 1997, and sits 120 kilometers away from the nearest city of Luoyang.
    “We collected 2,000 cans of air from She Shen Ya (a cliff on Laojun Mountain) early last month and we gave them out in multiple locations as a marketing campaign. It was gone in 20 minutes,” said Zhang.
    “We’ve launched two more events giving away air from the mountain. There will be more free fresh air coming in the future.”

    http://edition.cnn.com/2014/04/03/travel/china-air-bags/index.html?hpt=hp_c5

  15. David Avatar
    David

    Keep doing it Kammie we need more consumer advocates like you. It is not about whether one is right or wrong sometimes, it is more about demanding transparency.

  16. Kammie Holder Avatar
    Kammie Holder

    Norfolk county councillors have opted to scrap a controversial £500 million energy-from-waste (EfW) contract with consortium Cory Wheelabrator after a day of protracted discussions (April 7).

    The cabinet voted unanimously to terminate the contract this afternoon following an earlier full council meeting, which saw councillors vote 48-30 in favour of scrapping the deal with one abstention.

    The proposed Willows power and recycling centre is now set to be scrapped by Norfolk county council
    The council’s decision to end the 25-year contract, originally signed in February 2012, means that the council now faces paying up to £30 million in compensation to the consortium, which said it was “extremely disappointed” with the outcome of today’s meetings.

    According to the council, the cost of terminating the contract is estimated to be £30.26m, comprising capped compensation to Cory Wheelabrator of £20.3m, contractor public inquiry costs of £1.6m and exchange rate and interest rate related costs of £8.36m.

    As recommended in a report to the council published last week (see letsrecycle.com story), the decision means the end of plans for the Willows EfW plant, which would have treated 268,000 tonnes per year of household waste from Norfolk but had met with fierce opposition over the cost of the project.

    The news comes while a final planning decision for the EfW facility is still awaited from communities secretary Eric Pickles, who called in the project for a public inquiry last year.

    Defra also pulled £169 million funding for the project in October 2013 (see letsrecycle.com story), and councillors were concerned that this and the continued delay on a decision from Mr Pickles was causing the project’s value for money to drop with rising costs and a shortened contract payback period.

    Htttp://www.letsrecycle.com/news/latest-news/councils/norfolk-to-scrap-ps500m-incinerator-contract

  17. Kammie Holder Avatar
    Kammie Holder

    Another letter by the Future Centre Trust in the Sunday Sun dated April 21,2014 seeking disclosure from the government on the secretive US$240M plasma Gasification plant and no response as of today’s date. Dr Denis Lowe and his colleagues continue to show utmost contempt to the people of Barbados in defiance of their parliamentary oaths.

    Our concern and opposition about the viability of the ill conceived plasma gasification plant is further fueled as more companies and households undertake electricity generation thru the use of PV cells while the Future Centre Trust community recycling aka CoreNetwork is expanded. Thus, with reduced demand from the national grid and reduced waste generation going to SBRC will citizens be called upon to bankroll this white elephant with higher taxes.

    Finally, the Nation Publishing coincidentally headed by the Future Centre Trust Chair Mrs Vivianne Gittens must be commended for their vision in installing a 100Kwh PV System at the Nation Publishing.

  18. ac Avatar
    ac

    like you kammie holder the govt could sit back and belly ache … compliment the privileged few on the a job well done …..while ignoring the big picture of energy cost which involves all…..the monies that govt is asking the taxpayersto provide is not wasted money but monies which in the long run would be funneled into saving engery and millions of tax payers money ,,,the project to build the WTE plant is only a small sacrifice involving taxpayers money ,,be that as it may that in its finality would not only benefit the privilege few who can afford the alternative energy solutions which are now available but in the long run would both be beneficial to ordinary citizens in cutting energy cost ,,,,,, thereby saving govt billions of dollars yearly in fuel and other energy cost ,,,,,,savings which can go towards other projects that can generate jobs and further enhanced or forex capacity and growth….from what i gather they have been meetings held and attended by govt officials along the way before this project was aired out in parliament during the debate,,,,,,,what you are seeking is to obfuscate and display nude frontal exposure on behalf of those who would have you do their dirty work….

  19. Bajan Yankee Avatar
    Bajan Yankee

    On August 13, 2007, FPL workers at the company’s St. Lucie Nuclear plant in Florida discovered a leak in one of the facility’s condensation pumps. The plant was ordered to reduce its power output until repairs were made.[3]

    In 2008 activists complained about the 3,800 megawatt gas/diesel West County Energy Center, then under construction. They argued that the location of the power plant, less than 1,000 feet (300 m) from the northern point of the Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge, would endanger the entire Everglades ecosystem including the approximately thirty threatened or endangered species that live in the refuge. They argued that millions of gallons of waste water will be deep-well injected below the Floridan aquifer daily, putting a strain on water supplies in South Florida if the power plant is completed.[4]

    On February 26, 2008, a power outage occurred after eight power plants went off-line in the region which affected approximately 600,000 to 800,000 Florida residents.[5]

    Beginning on January 5, 2009, 30 environmental activists staged a five-day vigil along the Barley Barber Swamp, a 440-acre (1.8 km2) old growth cypress forest owned by Florida Power & Light, to draw attention to what they claimed were damages being wrought by the power company’s 3,750 megawatt Martin County plant. The activists claim that the Martin County power plant is drawing water from the aquifer below the swamp causing the soil to subside below the root systems of the trees. They also claim that the swamp exhibits several trees aged over 1,000 years, making them the oldest in Florida. On January 10 seventeen of the activists were arrested for trespassing. Florida Power & Light has since stated that the company will reopen the Barley Barber Swamp by 2010.[6]

  20. Bajan Yankee Avatar
    Bajan Yankee

    Florida Power $ Light building the Martin Next Generation Solar Energy Center — a $476 million, 75 MW(peak) parabolic trough array on 500 acres (200 ha) of the Martin County, Florida plant. The solar collectors will feed heat to the existing steam plant, reducing the need for gas.[14] The energy from the solar array will generate power at a rate of 155,000 MW·h per year.[15]

    FPL is building two solar photovoltaic power generation systems at Kennedy Space Center.[2]

    Now operational is the 25MW DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center in DeSoto County, Florida.[16] The facility uses more than 90,000 photovoltaic panels to supply power to more than 3,000 homes.

  21. Bajan Yankee Avatar
    Bajan Yankee

    Solar is the way http://youtu.be/M_5iHZOao4g

  22. Baje Iceman Avatar
    Baje Iceman

    This thing gone real quiet! The hottest gas produced so far is all the verbiage from the politicians and that foolish woman who get up at St. Thomas Parish Church and talk a lot on nonsense.

  23. Baje Iceman Avatar
    Baje Iceman

    Even the website that was much touted has disappeared!

  24. Fed Up Bajan Avatar
    Fed Up Bajan

    http://www.cahill-energy.com/why-barbados/barbados-converting-waste-to-energy/

  25. David Avatar
    David

    Another issue we need to hear Lowe and the government on. These guys really take us for fools.

  26. Due Diligence Avatar
    Due Diligence

    I think it is timely to go back to the start and revisit this blog.

    In particular this comment.

    Kammie Holder March 19, 2014 at 9:53 PM #

    Well Chris Sinckler made me proud this evening by using parliamentary privilege to make a mockery of my legitimate concerns. Eventually the truth about this project will emerge for time is longer than time.

    Kammie (and David and all the BU family), keep the pressure on so that eventually the truth about this project will emerge.

  27. Peltdownman Avatar
    Peltdownman

    @DD, that’s what he does best. He did the same thing in a public forum with June Fowler over CLICO. The BLP tried it with Richard Goddard over Greenland. Big mistake! These people have 1000 times more integrity and backbone than any politician.

  28. Due Diligence Avatar
    Due Diligence

    Peltdownman October 28, 2015 at 1:50 PM

    Let’s hope he gets the whole truth of Cahill to emerge.

    I also hope that June Fowler and the CLICO group see their money soon.

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