MELBOURNE, Australia, Sept. 10, 2007 -- The Victorian Government has announced that the Plenary Environment consortium has been awarded the contract to design, build, finance and operate a AUS$76M thermal drying biosolids facility for Barwon Water, one of the largest water corporations in the State.
Under the consortium arrangements, Plenary Environment has engaged Earth Tech to manage the design, construction and operation of the facility for the 20 year concession term. Plenary Environment is a wholly owned subsidiary of infrastructure specialist and consortium leader Plenary Group. Earth Tech is a global provider of consulting, engineering and facility operation services.
Based in Geelong, 80 kilometers southwest of Melbourne, Barwon Water provides quality water and sewerage services to 250,000 people in an 8,100 square kilometer region in southwest Victoria.
The new thermal drying facility will process the region's 54,000 tonnes of biosolids produced each year, providing a sustainable biosolids management solution for Barwon Water. The biosolids will be processed to "T1" grade to maximize the potential for sustainable beneficial use, as a fossil fuel replacement or fertilizer.
Plenary Group Principal, John O'Rourke, said that the consortium was very pleased that it had been chosen by Barwon Water, providing private sector expertise in the delivery of this important water project.
O'Rourke said, "The new biosolids facility will deliver one of the first steps Barwon Water needs to achieve its goal of a "zero waste" sewage treatment and water recycling process."
When completed in mid 2009, the facility will deliver:
• 100 % recycling of biosolids
• a fully enclosed, no dust, odor-controlled, thermal drying facility
• significantly reduced truck traffic on local roads
• a small non-obtrusive, ecologically sensitive footprint
Earth Tech's project director responsible for delivering the new biosolids facility, Peter Everist, said, "Management of biosolids is a key sustainability challenge for the water industry in Australia and around the world and this will be a project of national significance.
"As a former regional manager of our Geelong office, I am genuinely excited to be leveraging Earth Tech's global resources to deliver a world class biosolids solution for Barwon Water and the local community," he said.
Plenary Group is an independent infrastructure business with significant expertise in the development and operation of public infrastructure. Its focus is on the creation of quality community assets with long lasting benefits.
Earth Tech Inc. is a global provider of a full suite of engineering, construction and operations services to the international water/wastewater, environmental, transportation, and facilities markets.
###
