Methane plant eyes carbon credits

MANILA, Philippines - Montalban Methane Power Corp. (MMPC) expects to gain 500,000 carbon credits from the operations of its power plant at the Rodriguez landfill in the next five years. The P1.5-billion methane power plant is set to start its operations this July and will produce an initial output of two megawatts of electricity. MMPC is expected to produce up to 15 megawatts of power per year, which can sustain roughly 15,000 households. The plant is expected to run through 1,500 tons of garbage per day being thrown at the landfill. However, once the amount is increased to 2,500 tons of garbage it would be possible to extend the project duration to 10 years. Methane is a flammable gas from decaying waste that can be converted into electricity. Generating carbon credits is part of the Kyoto Protocol’s clean development mechanism (CDM), which allows companies to develop carbon dioxide emission reduction projects in developing countries and receive credits for doing so. Developing renewable energy projects is a way to obtain carbon credits. The CDM executive board of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change issues carbon credits after projects are validated and registered. The Kyoto Protocol seeks to meet the quota for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 2012. Carbon credits will also mean additional income for MMPC. However, the company declined to say how much it stands to gain from its target carbon credits. Earlier, Rodriguez Mayor Pedro S. Cuerpo in Rizal province banned Metro Manila waste to be dumped at the 14-hectare Montalban solid waste disposal facility. But he later changed his mind since the methane plant would need the waste. MMPC is a joint venture between the groups of mining magnate Salvador Zamora II and Carbon Capital Markets, a carbon trading company based in London that assumes the carbon credits from the project. — Ava Kashima K. Austria, BusinessWorld