Babcock & Wilcox (B&W) has secured a contract to conduct a feasibility study for integrating its SolveBright carbon capture technology into Mälarenergi‘s waste-to-energy plant in Västerås, Sweden.

Mälarenergi supplies 50 percent of the heating for the Västerås district, helping reduce electricity consumption and ensuring energy is available for other needs.  The aim is to capture and permanently store 400,000 tonnes of CO₂ annually and achieve carbon neutrality by 2035.

B&W‘s SolveBright scrubbing system is a post-combustion carbon capture technology that absorbs CO₂ directly from a plant’s flue gas using a regenerable solvent..

The study will focus on integrating B&W’s SolveBright system with the waste-to-energy plant and district heating system, identifying and managing usable heat, and optimising and rebalancing the facility, selecting the best technical configuration for higher operational efficiency.

By integrating carbon reduction efforts and capturing emissions, waste-to-energy facilities such as the Västerås plant play a pivotal role in advancing Sweden’s net-zero emissions goal.

The potential for the energy from waste (EfW) sector to decarbonise essential public infrastructure is outlined in a new report EfW with CCS: a key pillar for net zero in the UK. The report was commissioned by Viridor and published by specialist sustainability consultancy ERM.