17 October 2018  |  Sydney

DIF invests in Australian waste-to-energy facility

DIF is pleased to announce that a consortium comprising DIF, Macquarie Capital and Phoenix Energy Australia has achieved financial close on a greenfield waste-to-energy facility in Kwinana, near Perth, Australia. DIF has acquired a 60% shareholding in the project through two of its funds: DIF Infrastructure IV and DIF Infrastructure V.

Once operational the facility will divert up to 400,000 metrics tons of household, commercial, and industrial waste from landfills each year, representing a quarter of Perth’s post-recycling rubbish. The facility will benefit from long term municipal waste supply agreements with Rivers Regional Council and the City of Kwinana, two regional councils located in the Perth region.

At the facility the waste will undergo thermal treatment, whereby the recovered energy is converted into steam to produce electricity. Metallic materials will be recovered and recycled, while other by-products of the process will be reused as construction materials. At full capacity, the facility will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by more than 200,000 metric tons per year, the equivalent of taking 43,000 cars off the road.

Acciona, a global leader in waste-to-energy facilities, will design and construct the facility. The facility will use Keppel-Seghers moving grate technology, a proven technology which is used in over 100 waste-to-energy facilities across the globe. During the construction phase, more than 800 jobs will be created including apprenticeships and a range of sub-contracting and supply opportunities for local businesses. Construction will commence this month, while start of operations is planned for the end of 2021.

Once operational Veolia, which operates over 60 waste-to-energy plants across the globe, will operate and maintain the facility under a 25-year agreement. During the operational phase approximately 60 full-time positions will be created.

Managing Director of DIF Australia, Marko Kremer, added: “DIF is excited to invest in this landmark waste-to-energy facility in Australia and looks forward to continuing its contribution to the sector going forward. European countries have long embraced the conversion of waste into energy, which has proven to deliver multiple benefits in terms of managing waste and contributing to a sustainable and secure energy supply.”

About DIF

DIF is an independent infrastructure fund manager, with €5.6 billion of assets under management across seven closed-end infrastructure funds and several co-investment vehicles. DIF invests in greenfield and brownfield infrastructure assets located primarily in Europe, North America and Australasia through two complementary strategies:

  • DIF Infrastructure V targets equity investments in public-private partnerships (PPP/PFI/P3), concessions, regulated assets and renewable energy projects with long-term contracted or regulated income streams that generate stable and predictable cash flows.
  • DIF Core Infrastructure Fund I targets equity investments in small to mid-sized infrastructure assets in the energy, transportation and telecom sectors with mid-term contracted income streams that generate stable and predictable cash flows.

DIF has over 100 professionals in eight offices, located in Amsterdam, Frankfurt, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, Paris, Sydney and Toronto. Please see www.dif.eu or further information on DIF.

For further information on the project please contact:

Allard Ruijs
Partner
Email: a.ruijs@dif.eu

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