News: £750m PFI waste contract to be taken over

Renewi plc is getting rid of the loss-making contract at the 220,000 sq ft "BDR" waste facility in Rotherham.

It comes as Biffa, a leader in UK sustainable waste management, entered into an agreement to acquire Renewi’s municipal business in the UK. An alternative could have seen the facility handed back to the council.

The waste treatment facility at Brookfield's Park, which became fully operational in 2015, takes around 250,000 tonnes a year and creates a material suitable for recovery and recycling and includes Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) and Anaerobic Digestion (AD) facilities. More than 97% of the waste received is diverted from landfill.

Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham (BDR) Councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) for the scheme and the operators signed a 25 year contract worth in excess of £750m with the councils for the treatment of black bag waste.

Renewi has struggled with its UK municipal waste contracts, which it described as a "cash drag on the group – with a total cash outflow of approximately €28m over the last 24 months."

A strategic review of the business began last year with bosses looking to withdraw completely from the UK market. The company was formed when Shanks plc completed a merger with Dutch waste service provider and raw material and energy supplier, Van Gansewinkel Groep B.V., in 2017.

The deal covers five contracts and will have a net cost of €57m to Renewi but will free them from "unpredictable UK Municipal liabilities" and "Onerous Contract Provisions (OCPs)."

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In a statement, Renewi said: "The contracts were entered into more than ten years ago, by a Renewi predecessor; they are break-even or structurally loss-making and, in the absence of a legislative shift or significant changes in market conditions, can be neither prematurely terminated nor renegotiated by Renewi."

Michael Topham, CEO, Biffa, said: “The addition of these five contracts to our existing contracts in West Sussex, Leicester and Somerset further establishes our reputation as a trusted provider of complex, long-term waste treatment contracts to local governments.

“Our combined expertise will position us well for the future as we seek to help local governments deliver their net zero targets. We look forward to welcoming the Renewi UK team to Biffa and to working with our new customers in due course."

As part of the deal, around 550 Renewi staff will now become part of the Biffa group.

The five contracts are with the Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham (BDR) Waste Partnership, Cumbria County Council, Wakefield Council, East London Waste Authority and Argyle & Bute Council.

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News: Rotherham Council in talks over changes to PFI waste contract

Rotherham Council believes that the introduction of plastics to the kerbside waste collection service presents a low risk to its joint waste PFI contract.

Rothbiz reported last month that Renewi plc (formerly Shanks plc) was forced to make a £27m provision in its accounts as a result of its loss-making contract at the 220,000 sq ft "BDR" waste facility in Rotherham.

Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham (BDR) Councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) for the scheme and the operators signed a 25 year contract worth in excess of £750m with the councils for the treatment of black bag waste.

Following a consultation exercise, Rotherham Council is proposing to make changes to its waste collections. Paid for year round garden waste collections are due to start in Rotherham on October 29 with residents able to opt-in to the service at a cost of £39 a year. Kerbside plastic collections are set to be introduced in "early 2019" with the authority setting aside £5.54m for bins and vehicles.

A detailed paper to Councillors explains that the introduction of plastics to the kerbside waste collection service affects the waste tonnage and its composition being supplied to the residual waste disposal PFI contract which is due to continue until mid-2040.

Legally, the move may qualify as a "Significant Collection Change" and the Council said that it "has begun to engage with DEFRA and the PFI contractor informally around our proposals and will engage formally once the proposal is agreed."

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Since the Manvers facility opened, 96.5% of the waste received has been diverted away from landfill, cutting landfill taxes and C02 emissions.

Plastics from Rotherham black bins are extracted at the facility. Doncaster and Barnsley Councils already operate kerbside plastic collections. The rest is turned into a fuel which is used at the Ferrybridge Multifuel 1 facility in West Yorkshire. Once there, the fuel releases its energy to produce low carbon electricity which is supplied to the National Grid.

Trials may need to be carried out and if the changes affect recycling performance against pre-set targets or vary the PFI project materially then DEFRA may be entitled to withdraw some or all of the Waste Infrastructure Credits which support the PFI project.

Latest figures showed that the contractor was performing at 15.17% for recycling and was on target to achieve the 12.5% recycling performance by the end of the financial year. The contract includes a 12.5% termination trigger and a 19% target.

The report concludes: "The Council believes that the proposed new waste arrangements provide mitigation to any potential impact on the contractor and the risk to the PFI contract is therefore low.

"Firstly the removal of plastic from the residual waste stream may reduce costs at the PFI facility and therefore provide better value for money.

"Secondly, the introduction of kerbside plastic recycling will increase the Council's overall recycling rate and provide better value plastic into the market, which will militate against the volatility within low-value recycling markets.

"Finally, the Council believes it would be not in keeping with DEFRAs own priorities, or the South Yorkshire Strategy for the Council to suffer any contractual financial detriment for introducing kerbside plastic recycling, when the other authorities in the BDR Partnership already have it in place."

Last year, Renewi said that PFI contracts had come under pressure as a result of austerity measures, poor performance or because the contracts were inappropriate in the current market environment.

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News: Renewi struggling with Rotherham waste contract

Renewi plc (formerly Shanks plc) has been forced to make a £27m provision in its accounts as a result of its loss-making contract at the 220,000 sq ft "BDR" waste facility in Rotherham.

The Manvers centre creates material suitable for recovery and recycling and includes Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) and Anaerobic Digestion (AD) facilities.

Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham (BDR) Councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) for the scheme and Shanks Group plc joined in partnership with SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc) to progress the plans. Known as 3SE, the operators signed a 25 year contract worth in excess of £750m with the councils for the treatment of black bag waste.

In an update to the stock exchange on its municipal division, Renewi detailed increased onerous contract provisions in respect of the BDR and Wakefield PFI operating contracts, "reflecting prudent recognition of expected future losses over the remaining lives of the contracts."

An onerous contract is a contract where costs to fulfill terms are higher than the financial and economic benefit that is received.

Last year, Renewi said that PFI contracts had come under pressure as a result of austerity measures, poor performance or because the contracts are inappropriate in the current market environment.

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In a statement, Renewi said: "While the contracts at BDR and Wakefield both date back to 2011, the current financial year is the first full year of operation for both. Accordingly, given the financial and operational performance of these assets this year and specifically the material underperformance in organic throughput, subsidies and off-take pricing compared with the original contractual assumptions made many years ago, the Board has concluded that additional onerous contract provisions of £27m and £30m respectively are now required.

"These provisions will be accounted for in the Group's results for the year ending 31 March 2018 using a prudent discount rate. While these long term contracts may be subject to material changes in conditions over their remaining lives of up to 22 years, the Board does not anticipate any further provisions, assuming no material and lasting change in market conditions for off-take."

For example, paper and cardboard recycling markets in the UK and throughout the globe have faced a dramatic slump following China putting in place limitations on imports.

The firm previously reported that the operating contracts of Wakefield and BDR continue to be loss making in the current market conditions, despite substantial operational improvements. It added that underlying trading in the municipal division was on track for the current financial year and that good operational progress is being made against the recovery plans.

At Manvers, where 95% of waste is diverted from landfill, the contractor is currently performing at 15.17% for recycling and is on target to achieve the 12.5% recycling performance by the end of the financial year. The contract includes a 12.5% termination trigger and a 19% target.

Rotherham Council recently approved its budget which sees around a million pounds committed to allow the Council to move towards the introduction of kerbside collection of plastics – an issue that has been raised as a priority by residents in the recent waste service consultation.

It is not clear what affect this move would have on the the PFI contract which sees plastics, and other recyclables, processed from Rotherham's black bin waste.

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News: Rotherham waste facility operator reports on difficult year

Renewi plc (formerly Shanks plc) has reported on a difficult year for its municipal division which included "challenges" at its multimillion pound Rotherham facility.

Earlier this year Rothbiz reported on the temporary closure of the 220,000 sq ft "BDR" development at Brookfield's Park in Manvers to address a "latent defect and upgrade certain areas of the facility."

In its financial results for the year ending March 31, the international waste-to-product business reported that revenue at its municipal business grew by 8% to £203m as a result of the full year effect of commissioning its facilities at Wakefield and Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham (BDR), and construction activity in Surrey, Canada. However, the division recorded a trading loss for the year of £2.7m, compared to a profit of £9.4m in the previous year.

The UK business made a trading loss of £4.2m, compared to a profit of £7.8m in the previous year, impacted by the markets for the fuel that the plants recover from waste which "have experienced significant challenges over the past year and these worsened rather than improved in the second half."

The Manvers centre creates material suitable for recovery and recycling and includes Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) and Anaerobic Digestion (AD) facilities.

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Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham Councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) for the scheme and Shanks Group plc joined in partnership with SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc) to progress the plans. Known as 3SE, the operators signed a 25 year contract worth in excess of £750m with the councils for the treatment of black bag waste.

The operator, now known as Renewi following the merger between Shanks and the Van Gansewinkel Group, said in its report that: "The PFI sector in the UK has continued to face significant challenges for market participants. An increasing number of PFI contracts across the country have come under pressure as a result of austerity measures, poor performance or because the contracts are inappropriate in the current market environment. Within this unfavourable market background, our Municipal Division's portfolio of assets has been vulnerable contractually to the volatile recovered fuel markets, rising incinerator gate fees and the weakness of Sterling."

It added that first full year in production of Wakefield and BDR facilities "was challenging from an operational perspective" as it struggled to get the plants up to full optimisation. A new managing director and a recovery plan have been put in place which involves implementing urgent plans to bring the facilities up to full capacity and to maximise power generation, particularly in generating gas at the BDR plant.

Work to improve productivity and plant up-time by optimising maintenance and equipment reliability is also taking place to reduce unplanned stoppages.

The firm also said that it would negotiate off-take terms and secure better priced outlets for both refuse derived fuel (RDF), solid recovered fuel (SRF) and certain recyclates where appropriate. It will also negotiate improvements to local municipal contracts where possible.

The financial report also shows that accountants have included onerous contract provisions of £28.2m on the balance sheet relating to the municipal division. A new £8.6m provision relates to the BDR operating contract and a £9m provision covering incremental capital works that are required at BDR and Wakefield to enable the plants to function as intended.

Peter Dilnot, CEO of Renewi said that the company "will fix the Municipal Division and build up momentum for sustained growth and earnings accretion in 2018/19."

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News: Lithuanian Government visit South Yorkshire

South Yorkshire is playing host this week to a high-level delegation from the Lithuanian Government who are looking at public private partnership projects in the county.

During the three day visit they will see schemes in Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield and talk to the teams behind them about planning, procurement, construction and management.

The 12-strong delegation includes Ministry of Interior Heads and municipal Mayors from regions across Lithuania.

Projects they are due to visit include the Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham (BDR) Waste Partnership's waste treatment facility at Manvers (pictured), Sheffield Street Lighting project, Newfield with Talbot Specialist School in Sheffield, Barnsley Horizon Community College, Rotherham Leisure Centre, Doncaster Adwick Leisure Centre, and St Thomas Wharton Community College in Doncaster.

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The BDR Partnership secured £77.4m of Private Finance Initiative funding from central government towards the cost of the 220,000 sq ft waste treatment development at Brookfield's Park in Rotherham.

Shanks Group plc joined in partnership with SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc) to progress the plans. Known as 3SE, the operators signed a 25 year contract worth in excess of £750m with the councils for the treatment of black bag waste.

The facility processes around 250,000 tonnes of waste a year from 340,000 homes across Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham. Since it opened in July 2015, more than 96% of waste has been successfully diverted from landfill.

DC Leisure operates Rotherham Leisure Complex, Aston-cum-Aughton Leisure Centre, Wath upon Dearne Leisure Centre and Maltby Leisure Centre, on behalf of the Council. The centres were built as part of a £35m PFI project with the first opening in 2008.

The visit concludes today with High Tea at Rotherham Town Hall hosted by the Mayor of Rotherham, Lyndsay Pitchley. The Mayor of Siauliai City in Lithuania, Arturas Visockas, said the delegation was very much looking forward to learning from developments in South Yorkshire.

He said: "It will be very interesting to take a closer look at the UK's PPP projects and especially the good practices that led to their success. It means we will be able to approach future PPP projects with more diligence and confidence."

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News: Temporary closure at Rotherham waste facility

Shanks Group plc, one of Europe's leading waste management businesses, was forced to temporarily close its multimillion pound Rotherham facility during a difficult third quarter of trading.

The closure of the 220,000 sq ft development at Brookfield's Park in Manvers enabled the main contractor to make modifications to the plant to improve future performance.

The centre creates material suitable for recovery and recycling and includes Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) and Anaerobic Digestion (AD) facilities.

Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham Councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) for the scheme and Shanks Group plc joined in partnership with SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc) to progress the plans. Known as 3SE, the operators signed a 25 year contract worth in excess of £750m with the councils for the treatment of black bag waste.

The facility processes around 250,000 tonnes of waste a year from 340,000 homes across Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham. Since it opened in July 2015, more than 96% of waste has been successfully diverted from landfill.

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In its latest trading results Shanks plc stated: "The Municipal Division had a very difficult third quarter, with the impact of both the mix and prices of the fuels that we produce being worse than expected, particularly at East London Waste Authority (ELWA).

"The Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham (BDR) facility was also temporarily closed to allow the main contractor to make modifications to the plant to improve future performance.

"Management continue to focus closely on this division: the recovery initiatives announced with the interim results in November are being implemented and further plans are being developed by the new divisional management team to improve performance. We believe that these actions will turnaround the business, with the benefits starting to be seen in 2017/18."

Recovery initiatives include improving and realigning contracts and ramping up to expected performance levels at its operations.

A recent update to local councillors stated that "there have been some issues which have affected the recycling performance of the facility." These include ongoing issues with a poor market for recycling plastics from an MBT. The price of oil is low; this means the virgin plastic material is cheap and consequently lowers the value of the recyclable material.

The update added: "During October to December, work was undertaken at Bolton Road to replace shredder rails and improve the refinement section. As a result, a proportion of treated waste did not have recyclable material extracted and some waste was diverted to third parties. The Contactor has mitigated the impact of these issues by: paying to get plastics reprocessed; paying for waste to be taken to third parties who can also recover recyclable material from the residual waste; making the improvements to the refinement section to increase the throughput of material and the recycling captured by the process."

It was also reported that Shanks Group Plc as operating contractor for the BDR Facility are in the process of negotiating a merger with Van Gansewinkel Group. The merger is not expected to impact on the BDR Project although it is likely that Shanks Waste Management will be rebranded.

A number of tours for the public are taking place at the Manvers facility on February 18.

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News: Shanks experiences challenges at Rotherham waste plant

Shanks Group plc, one of Europe's leading waste management businesses, has been forced to admit that profitability at the award-winning waste treatment plant in Rotherham has not been reached as quickly as expected.

The 220,000 sq ft development at Brookfield's Park in Manvers creates material suitable for recovery and recycling and includes Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) and Anaerobic Digestion (AD) facilities.

Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham Councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) for the scheme and Shanks Group plc joined in partnership with SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc) to progress the plans. Known as 3SE, the operators signed a 25 year contract worth in excess of £750m with the councils for the treatment of black bag waste.

The facility processes around 250,000 tonnes of waste a year from 340,000 homes across Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham. Since it opened in July 2015, more than 96% of waste has been successfully diverted from landfill.

In a trading update to the stock exchange, Shanks plc, which has a 75% interest in the project, said: "We are continuing to experience challenges in ramping up the new Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham (BDR) and Wakefield facilities to targeted profitability as quickly as we had expected, the latter largely a result of the contractor insolvency last year."

The facilities are expected to contribute to profit and cash performance over the next 25 years but Shanks said its Municipal Division had continued to experience market and operational challenges in the UK, with a resultant impact on profitability.

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Reports to the BDR waste partnership board show that, during the first year of full service, there has been some processing issues in the refinement section of the plant. "As a result some waste was diverted from the facility to allow for improvements to be made to the refinement section of the MBT to improve the quantity and quality of the recyclates collected." Shanks has an improvement program in place to ensure the refinement section of the MBT is achieving its optimum performance. The areas for improvement have been agreed and the work is expected to be completed by the end of 2016.

Problems have also been encountered in the part of the facility that deals with solid recovered fuel (SRF) which has had some downtime due to boiler and crane issues. SRF is taken from Manvers to the new multi-fuel generator at Ferrybridge, operated by SSE.

Also, in August 2016, a fire in the quarantine bay of the reception area was dealt with by staff on site in addition to the fire service assistance. Minimal damage was caused to site.

In addition, the market for recycling plastics from an MBT is poor at the moment. The price of oil is low, this means the virgin plastic material is cheap and consequently lowers the value of the recyclable material. This has led to the contractor paying to get plastics reprocessed.

The report also shows that the total Unitary Charge paid to 3SE from the July 2015 to the end of March 2016 was £15.9m In the same period, the BDR waste partnership received Waste Infrastructure Credits from the Government for the value of £4.5m.

Despite the teething problems, the BDR and 3SE partnership won the Best Energy from Waste Initiative category at the MRW National Recycling Awards in July.

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News: Official opening of Rotherham waste facility

The pioneering new waste treatment facility at Manvers in Rotherham has been officially opened by the Lord-Lieutenant of South Yorkshire, Andrew Coombe.

The development at Brookfield's Park is designed to create material suitable for recovery and recycling and includes Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) and Anaerobic Digestion (AD) facilities.

Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham Councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative for the scheme and Shanks Group plc, one of Europe's leading waste management businesses, joined in partnership with SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc) to progress the plans. Known as 3SE, the operators signed a 25 year contract worth in excess of £750m with the councils for the treatment of black bag waste.

Unveiling a commemorative plaque to mark the occasion, the Lord Lieutenant, said: "This project oozes professionalism and the level of leading edge technology is incredible. The close co-operation between BDR, Shanks and SSE has resulted in the creation of the largest Mechanical Biological Treatment plant Shanks have ever built, and something totally unique in the UK.

"It is a significant demonstration of what people working together in South Yorkshire can achieve, and it augurs well for the future of the Sheffield City Region in what is the most exciting period of economic regeneration in this area for many decades."

Constructed by Balfour Beatty, more than 40 new jobs have been created at the Dearne Valley operation.

Over the next 25 years, up to 250,000 tonnes of leftover waste a year from 340,000 households will be treated. Operators believe it could divert 98% of waste from landfill and will save 114,000 tonnes of CO2 every year.

During processing, the waste is turned into recycled products, green energy, a nutrient-rich digestate and Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF). Under the contract, SSE will take around half of the RDF produced at Manvers to generate low carbon electricity at its new multifuel facility (known as FM1) in Ferrybridge.

Peter Eglington, managing director of Shanks Waste Management Ltd, said: "We are delighted to celebrate the opening of this important facility which diverts up to 96.5% from landfill and makes a significant CO2 saving. We now look forward to continuing to work closely with our customer to make more from waste in Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham."

Rhys Stanwix, director of thermal development at SSE, added: "SSE and our Joint Venture partner Wheelabrator Technologies Inc. have worked closely with Shanks since early in the development process of both the BDR waste treatment facility at Manvers, and the multi-fuel project at Ferrybridge."

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News: Manvers facility welcomes first waste

International waste-to-product business, Shanks Group plc has accepted the first waste into its waste treatment facility in Rotherham, part of a £750m contract with Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham Councils.

The development at Brookfield's Park is designed to create material suitable for recovery and recycling and includes Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) and Anaerobic Digestion (AD) facilities.

The three councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative for the scheme and Shanks Group plc, one of Europe's leading waste management businesses, joined in partnership with SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc) to progress the plans. Known as 3SE, the operators signed a 25 year contract worth in excess of £750m with the councils for the treatment of black bag waste.

Constructed by Balfour Beatty, more than 40 new jobs have been created at the Dearne Valley operation.

Waste from all three councils will start being delivered to the facility at Bolton Road at the rate of approximately 200 tonnes a day. Over the next few weeks, deliveries will increase to around 1,000 tonnes a day.

Over the next 25 years, up to 250,000 tonnes of leftover waste a year from 340,000 households will be treated. Operators believe that once the facility is fully operational in July, it will divert 98% of waste from landfill and will save 114,000 tonnes of CO2 every year.

During processing, the waste will be turned into recycled products, green energy, a nutrient-rich digestate and Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF). Under the contract, SSE will take around half of the RDF produced at Manvers to generate low carbon electricity at its new multifuel facility (known as FM1) in Ferrybridge. FM1 is scheduled to accept its first fuel next month and is expected to be fully operational later this year.

Peter Eglinton, managing director of Shanks' UK Municipal Division, said: "As a leading waste-to-product company, we are delighted to be accepting first waste at our BDR facility in Rotherham.

"The facility will help to make more from the waste produced in the area by increasing recycling, generating green energy and producing compost for land remediation. We look forward to continuing to work with the authorities and local residents to increase their diversion from landfill using this genuinely sustainable solution."

BDR Waste Partnership website
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News: New waste treatment facility opening in Rotherham

The multi-million pound waste treatment facility being built at Manvers, Rotherham will accept its first waste this week.

The development at Brookfield's Park is designed to create material suitable for recovery and recycling and includes Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) and Anaerobic Digestion (AD) facilities.

The facility will treat leftover household waste from Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham and turn it into a valuable resource rather than send it to landfill.

Waste from all three councils will start being delivered to the facility at Bolton Road at the rate of approximately 200 tonnes a day. Over the next six weeks, deliveries will increase to around 1,000 tonnes a day.

Over the next 25 years, up to 250,000 tonnes of leftover waste a year from 340,000 households will be treated.

Shanks Group plc, one of Europe's leading waste management businesses, joined in partnership with SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc) to progress plans to use three sites to treat waste including the new facility at Manvers.

The three councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative for the scheme and 3SE has signed a 25 year contract worth in excess of £750m with the councils for the treatment of black bag waste. Constructed by Balfour Beatty, more than 40 new jobs have been created at the Dearne Valley operation which is on schedule to be fully operational in July 2015.

The MBT facility will maximise recycling by extracting any overlooked plastic, steel, aluminium, glass and aggregate from residents' black or grey bins. The remaining material will be either sent as Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) to the new multi-fuel generator at SSE's Ferrybridge Power Station for energy production, or used on site in the Anaerobic Digestion (AD) facility to produce electricity and a form of compost for land remediation. Once fully operational, the site will lead to savings equivalent to 114,000 tonnes of CO2 every year.

Colin Fletcher, contracts director at Shanks, said: "Taking our first waste is a major milestone in this exciting new development which will revolutionise the treatment of leftover household waste from Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham. The team is in place and we are looking forward to making more from waste in the area."

Beth Clarke, manager at the BDR Waste Partnership, which was set up more than ten years ago to jointly manage waste generated in the three boroughs, said: "This facility will increase recycling, reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill, make energy from waste and create new jobs. At the same time we will be stepping up our campaign to encourage residents to recycle even more of what they throw away each day."

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News: Recruitment continues at Rotherham waste plant

The multi-million pound waste treatment facility being built at Manvers, Rotherham is set to be commissioned early next year and be fully operational by July 2015.

The development at Brookfield's Park is designed to create material suitable for recovery and recycling and will include Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) and Anaerobic Digestion (AD) facilities.

A recruitment open day is being held for dozens of new jobs being created. Taking place at Wath Community Library on Wednesday September 17, any time between 9am and 7pm, information will be available about the positions. These include MBT multi-skilled operators, SCADA operators, MBT supervisors, and other more general roles.

Shanks Group plc, one of Europe's leading waste management businesses, joined in partnership with SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc) to progress plans to use three sites to treat waste including the new facility at Manvers.

Colin Fletcher, contracts director at Shanks, said: "We have made a small number of appointments to specialist positions already and are now keen to recruit the rest of the team. We need to fill a wide range of roles and we look forward to taking this major step forward and getting people on board ready for the opening next summer.

"This is an exciting new development which will revolutionise the treatment of leftover household waste from Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham."

The facility would receive up to 265,000 tonnes per annum and treat leftover household waste from Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham. The three councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative for the scheme and 3SE has signed a 25 year contract worth in excess of £750m with the councils for the treatment of black bag waste.

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News: Recruitment at new Rotherham waste facility

Recruitment is underway for a range of jobs at the new 20,500 sq m waste facility in Manvers, Rotherham, which is due to be fully operational by July 2015.

A partnership between Shanks Group plc and SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc), 3SE plans to use three sites to treat waste with this new facility adjacent to the NEXT warehouse at Brookfield's Park, designed to create material suitable for recovery and recycling.

The Bolton Road facility would receive up to 265,000 tonnes per annum and treat leftover household waste, and a small amount of commercial waste, from Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham. The three councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative for the scheme.

The development will include a Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) and Anaerobic Digestion (AD) facilities and the plant is expected to create 40 jobs.

Colin Fletcher, contracts director at Shanks, said: "We are delighted to be at the stage where we are starting to recruit our team for this exciting new development which will revolutionise the treatment of leftover household waste from Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham.

"We need to fill a wide range of roles and we look forward to taking this major step forward and getting people on board ready for the opening next summer. After this initial recruitment drive we will also be holding a job shop event in October to make further appointments."

The plant will process municipal solid and organic waste into recycled products, solid recovered fuel (SRF) and biogas for energy generation, and digestate for compost and fertilizer.

Construction began in 2012 with Birse and Mansell (both part of Balfour Beatty) securing the £34m contract for the buildings and infrastructure as part of a new Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) facility.

Shanks is working closely with the three BDR partner councils and Jobcentreplus to highlight the new jobs opportunities within local communities.

Shanks will operate the facility over the 25-year period of the contract until 2040. It estimates that the contract is worth £750m.

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News: SSE supporting local companies

Around 70 local firms attended an event in Rotherham to find out more about contracts available in Yorkshire with SSE, one of the largest utilities companies in the UK.

They were able to register with a new Open4Business web portal which gives details of a wide range of opportunities with SSE and their sub-contractors – from steel flooring to catering, civil engineering to environmental projects.

SSE is the company behind the new waste treatment facility being built at Manvers for the BDR Waste Partnership, and Ferrybridge Power Station.

SSE Project Manager for O4B, Nolan Miller, said the aim was to support the economic development of the areas the company works in and encourage small and medium sized enterprises. "We want to know about all the different types of businesses available in this area so we can utilise the skills and expertise that are here on our doorstep rather than bringing them in from outside," he said.

SSE is the second largest energy supplier in the UK, with 9.5 million customers in the UK and Ireland.

The BDR waste treatment facility at Manvers is due to come on stream in 2015 to deal with leftover household waste from Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham.

Shanks Group plc, one of Europe's leading waste management businesses, joined in partnership with SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc) to progress plans to use three sites to treat waste with a new facility at Brookfield's Park, designed to create material suitable for recovery and recycling.

The facility would receive up to 265,000 tonnes per annum and treat leftover household waste from Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham. The three councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative for the scheme and 3SE has signed a 25 year contract worth in excess of £750m with the councils for the treatment of black bag waste.

SSE Development and Stakeholder Manager, Dafydd Wynn, said that after treatment, around half of this waste-derived fuel would go to the Multifuel project at Ferrybridge to be used to generate electricity.

The O4B event was hosted by RiDO, the regeneration arm of ROtherham Council, and the BDR Waste Partnership, supported by business development officers from the three local authorities.

BDR website

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News: SSE urges Rotherham firms not to waste contract opportunities

Local businesses will get the chance to express an interest in contracts in Yorkshire with SSE, one of the largest utilities companies in the UK and partner in the multi-million pound waste treatment facility being built at Manvers, Rotherham.

SSE has launched a new Open4Business web portal which gives local firms details of contract opportunities available, similar to a scheme used at the London 2012 Olympic Games.

A free event is being held in Rotherham on October 15 for local firms to learn more about how the portal works and the contact opportunities that are available with SSE and local authorities.

The energy giant spends around £200m each year in the North of England and is committed to helping small to medium enterprises in the areas in which it operates. SSE projects in Yorkshire include the new waste treatment facility being built at Manvers for the Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham (BDR) Waste Partnership with Shanks.

Currently under construction adjacent to the NEXT warehouse at Brookfield's Park, the facility is designed to create material suitable for recovery and recycling. It is set to open in 2015 and receive up to 265,000 tonnes per annum and treat leftover household waste from Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham.

The three councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative for the scheme and the partnership between SSE and Shanks (called 3SE) signed a 25 year contract worth in excess of £750m with the BDR councils for the treatment of black bag waste.

Alistair Phillips-Davies, chief executive of SSE, said: "SSE is investing around £4m a day in new energy infrastructure throughout the UK and we want to see real economic and social benefits flow to local businesses and communities as a result.

"The Open4Business portal is a critical part of our approach in creating the strongest possible local supply chain. Quite simply, if local companies want a share of our investment in their area, Open4Business is the best route to get it."

The free event is being held at the Holiday Inn Express at Manvers and has been funded through RiDO's South Yorkshire Sector Growth Enhancement Programme (SYSGEP), which is part financed by the European Regional Development Fund through the Yorkshire and The Humber ERDF 2007-13 Programme. The project aims to support both inward investors and expanding indigenous businesses to accelerate private sector expansion and increase the competitiveness of the region's business base.

Tim O'Connell, business development manager at Rotherham Investment and Development Office (RiDO), said: "We have a number of high quality companies in the Rotherham area, and through this event we're pleased to be able to help them find potential future business opportunities."

Businesses wishing to attend should register as soon as possible on the RiDO website.

BDR Waste Partnership website

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News: Work due to start on Manvers waste plant

Construction work is due to start this month on the 20,500 sq m waste facility in Manvers, Rotherham after planning consent was confirmed.

A partnership between Shanks Group plc and SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc), 3SE plans to use three sites to treat waste with this new facility adjacent to the NEXT warehouse at Brookfield's Park, designed to create material suitable for recovery and recycling.

The facility would receive up to 265,000 tonnes per annum and treat leftover household waste from Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham. The three councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative for the scheme.

Members of the planning board at Rotherham Council approved the planning application in April 2012. Then as part of the rigorous process for such proposals, it was subject to further government and potential legal scrutiny. The formal period for all this has now passed and the development can now go ahead.

Work is due to start on site this month with the construction of a new access bridge into the development site starting on Monday September 10.

This will mean the temporary closure of a 700-metre stretch of public bridleway for an initial period of six months.

Birse and Mansell (both part of Balfour Beatty) are the main contractors for the £34m contract to construct buildings and infrastructure as part of a new Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) facility.

The Manvers plant is expected to create 40 jobs with more in the construction phase. Construction is expected to take 28 months with completion scheduled for winter 2014. After a period of testing, the plant is expected to become fully operational in spring 2015.

Shanks will operate the facility over the 25-year period of the contract until 2040. They estimate that the contract is worth £750m.

BDR Waste Partnership website

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News: 3SE looking for local suppliers for £77m Rotherham waste facility

Rotherham businesses are being invited to meet the contractors responsible for building the proposed new waste treatment facility at Bolton Road, Manvers.

Shanks Group plc, one of Europe's leading waste management businesses, joined in partnership with SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc) to progress plans to use three sites to treat waste with a new facility adjacent to the NEXT warehouse at Brookfield's Park, designed to create material suitable for recovery and recycling.

Earlier this month, Balfour Beatty, the international infrastructure group, were awarded a £34m contract to construct buildings and infrastructure as part of the Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) facility.

Shanks representatives will lead a suppliers event with partners Birse and Mansell (both part of Balfour Beatty) plus Celtic, the civil engineers and AD Technology specialist and Ecodeco, who will install the MBT technology.

The project will require a wide range of goods and services, ranging from canteen services to engineering and construction, and office materials, transport services and accommodation.

Each session will open with an introduction to the project, followed by one-to-one meetings between the companies and suppliers. There will be further opportunities for informal networking with the project contractors.

Nigel Catling, capital delivery director at Shanks Group, said: "This is a key opportunity for local suppliers to talk to the people in the lead agencies already involved in this important project's development.

"We hope as many local suppliers as possible take the opportunity to find out more and come and talk to those directly involved. We can't guarantee work on the project, but at least you will learn what is required to get on preferred supplier lists for major project work, which can only prove of long-term benefit to your business."

The business networking event is to be held on Friday June 22 at the Dearne Valley Kingswood Centre, in Denaby Main, Doncaster. The event will run in two sessions from 9am - 11.30am and 12 noon - 2.30pm.

Interested companies should complete the registration form on the BDR Waste Partnership website.

The facility would receive up to 265,000 tonnes per annum and treat leftover household waste from Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham. The three councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative for the scheme.

The Manvers plant is expected to create 40 jobs with more in the construction phase. Construction is expected to take 28 months with completion scheduled for winter 2014. After a period of testing, the plant is expected to become fully operational in spring 2015.

Shanks will operate the facility over the 25-year period of the contract until 2040. They estimate that the contract is worth £750m.

BDR Waste Partnership website

Images: 3SE

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News: Balfour Beatty to build Manvers waste facility

Balfour Beatty, the international infrastructure group, has been awarded a £34m contract to construct buildings and infrastructure as part of a new Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) facility in Rotherham.

A partnership between Shanks Group plc and SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc), 3SE plans to use three sites to treat waste with this new facility adjacent to the NEXT warehouse at Brookfield's Park, designed to create material suitable for recovery and recycling.

The facility would receive up to 265,000 tonnes per annum and treat leftover household waste from Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham. The three councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative for the scheme.

The plans, put together by consultants, Mouchel, are for 20,500 sq m of buildings on six hectares of brownfield land which was once part of the former Manvers Colliery spoil tip and coke works. Around 11% of the site in the Green Belt.

The buildings include the main intelligent transfer station (ITS) and anaerobic digestion (AD) buildings, together with an administration and visitor centre building, workshop, weighbridge and gatehouse.

Ian Tyler, chief executive at Balfour Beatty, said that the contract strengthens the company's position in the growing waste sector in the UK and demonstrates the flexibility of the investment business model as well as their ability to harness the skills within the group.

In April, members of the planning board at Rotherham Council referred the plans to the government's National Planning Casework Unit who handle major planning applications on behalf of the Secretary of State. If they decide not to intervene, planning permission will be granted, subject to a number of conditions.

The Manvers plant is expected to create 40 jobs with more in the construction phase. Construction is expected to take 28 months with completion scheduled for winter 2014. After a period of testing, the plant is expected to become fully operational in spring 2015.

Balfour Beatty website

BDR Waste Partnership website

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News: 3SE signs BDR waste PFI contract

Confident in receiving planning permission for a new recycling plant at Manvers, operator 3SE has signed a 25 year contract worth in excess of £750m with Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham (BDR) councils for the treatment of black bag waste.

Shanks Group plc, one of Europe's leading waste management businesses, joined in partnership with SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc) to progress plans to use three sites to treat waste with a new facility adjacent to the NEXT warehouse at Brookfield's Park, designed to create material suitable for recovery and recycling.

The facility would receive up to 265,000 tonnes per annum and treat leftover household waste from Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham. The three councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative for the scheme.

Subject to planning permission being granted, Shanks will build a Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) and Anaerobic Digestion (AD) facility at Bolton Road, Manvers by 2015. This plant will process municipal solid and organic waste into recycled products, solid recovered fuel (SRF) and biogas for energy generation, and digestate for compost and fertilizer. Shanks will operate the facility over the 25-year period of the contract until 2040.

The Rotherham facility will be one of the first where Shanks has delivered an MBT and an AD plant on the same site which will also treat a small amount of commercial waste from the three councils.

Peter Dilnot, chief executive of Shanks Group plc, said: "We are delighted that our joint venture, 3SE, has reached financial close on the BDR PFI contract. This contract combines Shanks' established expertise in advanced and sustainable waste processing with SSE's leadership in sustainable energy generation.

"Working together with the three councils we will maximise recycling and green energy production from waste."

The planning board meet on Thursday to discuss the plans and are being recommended by planning officers to grant planning permission for the facility.

BDR Waste Partnership website

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News: Manvers waste plans go to board

Members of Rotherham Council's planning board are being recommend to approve plans for a new waste recycling centre in Manvers.

A partnership between Shanks Group plc and SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc), 3SE plans to use three sites to treat waste with this new facility adjacent to the NEXT warehouse at Brookfield's Park, designed to create material suitable for recovery and recycling.

The facility would receive up to 265,000 tonnes per annum and treat leftover household waste from Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham. The three councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative for the scheme.

The plans, put together by consultants, Mouchel, are for 20,500 sq m of buildings on six hectares of brownfield land which was once part of the former Manvers Colliery spoil tip and coke works. Around 11% of the site in the Green Belt.

The buildings include the main intelligent transfer station (ITS) and anaerobic digestion (AD) buildings, together with an administration and visitor centre building, workshop, weighbridge and gatehouse.

The planner's report states that the application should be approved and details the need to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill and the appropriate use of the land. The impact on highway capacity and road safety, local wildlife, air quality, noise and odour is also addressed. Planning permission would be subject to a number of conditions such as those that restrict the time of operation and deliveries.

With regard to the Green Belt, the plans state that: "The development is not considered to have a materially detrimental impact on the visual amenity or openness of the Green Belt when viewed from the surrounding areas due to the existing imposing warehouse developments to the south.

"The area to the north has been recently landscaped It is considered that the principle of a waste management facility is acceptable in this location from a planning policy perspective.

"Very special circumstances exist which outweigh the harm of inappropriate development partially within the Green Belt."

The report adds that: "The transport assessment is considered to demonstrate that the proposal will not have a materially detrimental impact over and above the existing junction capacity."

Monthly meetings are expected between the three Councils' Waste Management departments and they will have a significant amount of future control of the site for the duration of the development.

The Manvers plant is expected to create 40 jobs with more in the construction phase. Construction is expected to take 28 months with completion scheduled for winter 2014. After a period of testing, the plant is expected to become fully operational in spring 2015.

The planning board meets to discuss the plans on April 5.

BDR Waste Partnership website

Images: SSE / Mouchel

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News: Plans submitted for Rotherham waste facility

The detailed planning application for a new waste recycling centre in Manvers, Rotherham has been submitted.

In April, specialist waste organisation 3SE was named as the preferred bidder in principle for the contract to develop a facility to treat leftover household waste from Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham.

A partnership between Shanks Group plc and SSE (Scottish and Southern Energy plc), 3SE plans to use three sites to treat waste with the new facility adjacent to the NEXT warehouse at Brookfield's Park in Manvers, designed to create material suitable for recovery and recycling.

The facility would receive up to 265,000 tonnes per annum of municipal solid waste and Shanks estimates that the 25 year contract has a revenue value of £750m.

The three councils secured £77m through the Private Finance Initiative for the scheme and Shanks believes that the contract will reach financial close this calendar year.

The plans, put together by consultants, Mouchel, are for 20,500 sq m of buildings on six hectares of brownfield land which was once part of the former Manvers Colliery spoil tip and coke works. The buildings include the main intelligent transfer station (ITS) and anaerobic digestion (AD) buildings, together with an administration and visitor centre building, workshop, weighbridge and gatehouse.

The plans state that: "3SE will manage residual waste from the three BDR authorities at the proposed facility in a four stage treatment process; shredding, biodrying, refinement and anaerobic digestion. The facility has been designed to manage the peak waste generation that the three authorities will generate.

"The overall aim of the four stage process is to create material suitable for recovery and recycling, whilst stabilising the remaining fraction as a pre-treatment for landfill. Waste is aerated to stabilise and sanitise the material. The aerated material is then separated into seven fractions by a combination of sieving, weight separation and metal extraction."

These include Solid Recovered Fuel (SRF), biodegradable material (fines), glass, ferrous and non-ferrous metals, plastics and residuals for landfill.

The solid fuel recovered will then be transported to a proposed multi-fuel plant next to the existing coal-fired power station at Ferrybridge, where it will be used to generate electricity. 3SE recently received consent from the Department of Energy and Climate Change to develop an up to 108MW multi-fuel project within its existing Ferrybridge site.

The biodegradable material (fines) will be moved to anaerobic digestion plant on the Manvers site where they will be processed organically to create biogas for fuel. Leftover material will be used in landfill remediation projects as a soil improver. The total annual capacity of the AD facility is 18,000 tonnes.

The Manvers plant is expected to create 40 jobs with more in the construction phase. Construction is expected to take 28 months with completion scheduled for winter 2014. After a period of testing, the plant is expected to become fully operational in spring 2015.

The submission of plans follows an extensive programme of public consultation which has seen details of local residents' feedback published online.

Stephen Ray, bid director for Shanks, said: "We are grateful to everyone who has given us their comments so far. I would like to stress that the dialogue does not stop now that the application has been submitted.

"We are setting up a Community Liaison Group so that we can continue to engage with local residents. We will also be organising a local supplier day in the New Year so that we can meet local businesses to discuss opportunities for them to provide goods and services for the new plant, subject of course to our obtaining planning permission."

The application will be scrutinised by statutory consultees including the three local authorities before it is considered by Rotherham Council's planning committee next year.

BDR Waste Partnership website
Online planning application

Images: 3SE / Mouchel

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