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At Poznan, in Poland, waste is converted to electricity to meet the growing needs of the population

To meet European environment standards, Poznan opted to build a waste-to-energy production unit. The fifth largest city in Poland opted for a PPP with SUEZ to minimise its own financial contribution. Dual benefits for the population, for whom 30% of their domestic electricity is now generated by this facility.

The mission

Poznań: first Public-Private Partnership for the waste recovering

The fifth-largest city in Poland, Poznań inaugurated the country's first waste incineration plant some 80 years ago.

In response to the new waste treatment framework directive, which allows municipalities to fully sort, collecte, transport, recycle and dispose of municipal waste, the city of Poznań decided to build an energy from waste plant.


This new infrastructure represents an opportunity for the region to reduce the amount of landfilled waste and to meet the growing needs of the population for electricity.

210,000
tonnes
of waste to be treated per year. 
730,000
inhabitants concerned in Poznań and in 9 towns in the surrounding area.
Our solution

Convert waste into energy.

The energy from waste plant was built on land granted by the city of Poznań and commissioned in 2016.

Energy production from waste: a new resource

Based on innovative incineration and co-generation methods, the energy from waste plant built by SUEZ produces both electricity and heat.
  • Non-recyclable waste is incinerated.
  • Combustion activates a turbine used to produce electricity, injected into the city's electrical grid.
  • The heat generated by the incineration supplies the district heating in Poznań.
    • Waste thus becomes a vital resource for the city's energy supply.


A PPP to optimise the financing of the project
The city of Poznań chose to undertake this project in the form of a public-private partnership, thereby limiting the impact on the city's budget.
In December 2012, after a six-month competitive dialogue, it signed a 25-year construction, operation and transfer contract with the joint venture set up by SUEZ and the Marguerite Fund, the European Fund for Energy, Climate Change and Infrastructure.
  • The granting of this subsidy by the European Union allowed for increasing the scope of the project. This European funding was granted only after SUEZ was selected.
  • The total cost of this investment, €180 million, was financed via a European subsidy of €84 million and a non-recourse loan of €96 million.
The results
20
%
The gain made on the cost of treating urban waste.
€34
million
in estimated annual revenue.
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