The Province of Cebu is conducting initial talks with CEMEX Philippines on the possibility of producing Refuse Derived Fuel or RDF from solid waste.
In a meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 4, Gov. Gwen Garcia and CEMEX Philippines country head Luis Franco had an initial talk on the matter in order to manage solid waste across the province.
RDF is a fuel produced from combustible components that the industry calls Municipal Solid Waste – MSW or what is commonly called garbage. This waste, usually taken from industrial or commercial sites, is shred, dried, baled and then finally burned to produce electricity. Typically, MSW arrives at a Materials Recovery Facility and is then screened for recyclable materials, which are then removed.
Gov. Garcia said this as an option while the waste-to-energy project that the Provincial Government has long been planning has yet to take off.
The Governor is considering this option especially since CEMEX has already been producing RDF from wastes that it collects from at least six local government units (LGUs) in Cebu Province, acting as substitute to coal in energizing its plant in the City of Naga.
Gov. Garcia pointed out that this is a very good model that she wants to expand for the province, saying the whole island might be able to produce about 800-1,000 metric tons of waste daily.
The governor has asked CEMEX executives present at the meeting to make a formal proposal to the Economic Enterprise Council on how they can go about this venture moving forward.
As in any project proposals to the Provincial Government, the EEC will deliberate on them to assess their economic viability, especially on the Capitol’s side.
Gov. Gwen plans to present this possible venture in her meeting with the mayors this Friday. | Carlo Lorenciana