BMC will tap sludge for power worth Rs77 cr

Here is some consolation. The delayed Mumbai Sewage Disposal Project (MSDP) will not merely be a sewage disposal project, it will be a water conservation and power generation project as well. The BMC is aiming to generate about 17 megawatt (MW) power every month from the sludge.

The BMC is all set to launch the MSDP (phase II). The project has been delayed for more than two years as the civic body was waiting for Centre’s help. Because of the delay, the project cost has gone up by 70% from the original Rs5,000 crore.

Last year, the Centre finally approved the project under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM). The civic body has begun preliminary work for the project that requires augmentation of the sewage network from Vile Parle to Dahisar.

It has been estimated that the treatment of 2,300 million litre of sewage water daily, will generate 1,500 metric tonne of sludge. And from this sludge, 17 MW power will be generated every month.

“The sludge is just like garbage that has to be dumped. But there was no place to dump it. Now, the sludge will be stored at seven treatment plants across the city, each of which will be equipped with power generation. The treatment plants will run on power generated from them. It will save Rs77.13 crore per year,” a BMC official said.

“The MSDP II project will enable the BMC to treat about 2,300 million litre of sewage water, out of which 1,325 million litre can be used for non-potable purposes, such as washing cars, gardening, etc,” deputy municipal commissioner DL Shinde said.
Ashish Shelar, BJP leader in BMC, said, “Initially, there was a problem of disposing of the sludge. Now, the BMC will generate power from gases emerging from it.”