Maltese-German research project

A joint research effort between Malta and Germany will look into the feasibility of developing a new waste-to-energy technology linking waste recycling directly to desalination plants.

The initiative, announced yesterday by Environment Minister George Pullicino in the presence of his German counterpart Sigmar Gabriel, aims to hit two birds with one stone. The eventual idea is to have a single plant that would recycle waste and simultaneously power a desalination plant.

Power generated through waste can already be offloaded onto the grid and in this way used to power desalination. However, in the process a substantial amount of energy is lost, Mr Pullicino explained.

The proposal is to bypass this circuit by linking desalination and waste recycling directly. The project would bring together German expertise on waste recycling and local knowledge on energy-efficient desalination, he added.

A study will be carried out exploring whether the project would be viable. When this is complete and if the project is indeed viable, the two governments will discuss how to bring the idea to fruition.

If the project does materialise, the two countries are hoping to use the prototype to showcase the technology's potential as a solution for neighbouring north African countries, which, Mr Pullicino highlighted, have a "bigger problem than we have" when it comes to waste management and who face similar water scarcity problems.

The German minister leaves Malta today after a two-day visit, which included meetings with the Malta Environment and Planning Authority, Wasteserv and with government officials.

His visit coincided with the conclusion of a twinning project between Malta and Germany on industrial waste management. The project, which attracted a €400,000 grant from the European Commission, involved an exchange of technical know-how between the German and the Maltese teams.