Source: Materials Recycling Week
Feb. 15, 2010    ShareThis

A plant which is set to revolutionise the way Cathode Ray Televisions
are recycled is weeks away from opening.
The plant, operated by Nulife Glass, has created 30 new jobs in the
region and once up and running will have the capacity to recycle 2000
TV screens every month.
With CRTs a thing of the past as people upgrade to the latest
flat-screen models, there are an ever growing number being thrown away,
most of which end up in landfill with potentially harmful environmental
consequences.
Nulife Glass founder Simon Greer has spent the last 14 years working on
a pioneering technique to safely recycle the screens which would
otherwise end up in landfill or be shipped abroad to be re-sold.
Greer’s pioneering process consists of a unique emission-free furnace
technology that produces clean glass and lead which can then be used
for things like church roofs and flooring respectively.
He said: “What this process allows you to do is create usable products,
here in the UK, so there is no need to ship this material abroad.”
Talking about the opening of the new plant he said: “People from all
over the world who are interested in buying a plant from us are coming
to visit us first.
“We have got people coming from the USA, Canada, Eastern Europe and all
over the UK.”
EBRD finances construction of new wind farm in Bulgaria
Source: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
Jan. 19, 2010   ShareThis

€60 million syndicated loan to build Suvorovo wind farm
The EBRD is supporting the development of renewable energy in Bulgaria
with a €60 million syndicated loan to Eolica Bulgaria to finance the
development of the Suvorovo wind farm, in the north-eastern region of
the country.
Similar to many countries in the region, Bulgaria relies significantly
on thermal and nuclear sources to satisfy its power needs, with less
than 10 per cent of its electricity generated from renewable sources,
of which just one per cent from wind power. The project will help
Bulgaria meet its EU set target to increase its renewable energy
production to 16 per cent by 2020.
Located 25 km inland from the Black Sea, the Suvorovo wind farm will
comprise 30 wind turbines and will have a capacity of 60 MW. It is
expected to start its operation by the end of 2010.
As part of the project, Eolica Bulgaria, majority-owned by the Spanish
Enhol Group, focusing on development of renewable energy in Spain,
central and eastern Europe, will develop and operate the wind farm,
build a new substation at the project site and a line to interconnect
the wind farm to the national power network.
Structured under the Bank’s A/B scheme, the EBRD will offer €17.5
million for syndication, retaining €42.5 million on its account.
With total cost of €108 million the project is co-financed by a €11
million loan from the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank and by Enhol
Group’s equity investment.
'Promoting generation of renewable energy is one of the EBRD’s core
priorities in countries of its operations, and we are pleased to
support this important project at a time when securing the necessary
financing remains a challenging task”, said Nandita Parshad, Director
of EBRD's Power and Energy team.
“The Suvorovo wind farm will have a strong demonstration impact,
outlining the commercial viability of such projects and will help
Bulgaria in meeting its green energy objectives”, added Nandita Parshad.
“It has taken a while to achieve the full development of a project in
Bulgaria, but certainly, Suvorovo project consolidates Enhol Group’s
presence in the country where we anticipate the construction of several
wind farms with a total installed capacity of 200-250 MW in the next
few years”, said Antonio Oliver, Enhol Group’s CEO.
In the recent years Enhol Group’ has been focusing on extending its
activities internationally, particularly in eastern Europe, Latin
America and India. The Group’s total portfolio of projects at different
stages of development, including the wind farms in Spain, Italy and
Portugal, represent close to 1000MW of nominal capacity.
This is the EBRD’s second wind farm project in Bulgaria. In 2008 the
Bank and the International Financial Corporation provided a €198
million investment for the construction of the St. Nikola wind farm.
Overall, since the beginning of the EBRD’s operations in Bulgaria, the
Bank has committed €2 billion in more than 120 projects in key sectors
of country’s economy, mobilising additional investment worth more than
€6.7 billion.