Kelvin Road Landfill Gas Power Generation Facility

Grid-connected renewable generation
Location: Gosnells, WA

The site

AGL has undergone development of a Build-Own-Operate landfi ll gas extraction and power generation facility at Gosnells City Council's Kelvin Road Waste Disposal Facility. Methane-rich gas is produced by decomposing organic waste within the landfi ll. The landfill gas is extracted and combusted to generate electricity.

Technology

The gas is extracted from the landfill through an array of wells interconnected by a network of buried pipes. A blower is used to actively draw the landfi ll gas into the extraction system. Adjustments made to the blower and the individual wells facilitate the efficient operation of the extraction and combustion system.

"The City took the decision after owning and operating this landfill site for over thirty years to implement an ambitious plan to create a wonderful sustainable asset for the community, including the production of `green power'."
City of Gosnells Mayor, Patricia Morris

Energy purchase and supply

At full capacity the plant is expected to produce approximately 15 GWh of electricity annum. The generator operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week and is accredited the Mandatory Renewable Energy Target (MRET) Scheme and the Green Power. The generation facility is connected to the Western Power Corporation's distribution at 22 kV. AGL has the rights to the gas extracted from the landfill, and power generated from the project is sold to WA Power Exchange under long-term agreement.

Environmental impact

The project is expected to save approximately 60,000 tonnes per annum of greenhouse emissions (the equivalent of removing over 13,500 cars from our roads) by utilising gas that would otherwise escape into the atmosphere and by offsetting fossil fuel electricity generation.