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  • 25 February 2022
  • News

A tale of two generators

Whitford Landfill & Energy Park: Out with the old (in its original packaging!)

 

Two of Waste Management’s hardest workers are retiring after a combined 32 years of 24/7 service.

Whitford and Redvale landfill & energy parks are bidding a fond farewell to two of their oldest generators, with each replacement costing $1.3m. Each of the generators is now installed and ready to kick into action.

The generators are what enable us to convert landfill gas to electricity – and make Waste Management Auckland’s largest producer of renewable energy.

And while the new generators are exciting new additions, let’s pay a little homage to our retirees!

  • Together they have worked 24 hours, 7 days a week (barring time for maintenance and repairs) – a combined total of 250,000 hours
  • Redvale’s generator has produced 144,840 megawatts of energy over 15 years – that’s enough to power 20,000 homes for a year
  • Whitford’s generator has been turning landfill gas into electricity for 18 years and has produced 128,815 megawatts

 

Whitford Landfill & Energy Park: And in with the new

 

Our new generators have come all the way from Austria and have been close to a year in transit.

Waste Management’s Operational & Technical Services (OATS) division has spent a month installing and commissioning the generators at each site, with the final checks taking place now. Both should be in action within the next few days.

The replacements mean Redvale will continue to have 14 generators and Whitford will continue to have 5 – all working constantly to produce renewable energy that feeds back into the national grid.

A huge thank you to our incredibly talented OATS team, and special mention to Senior Project Engineer – Operational and Technical Services Andries Kingsley and Technical Manager Mike Beretta for all the hard work and planning.

And not to worry, the old generators still have a little life in them yet. They’ll be kept onsite at Whitford and Redvale for parts and in this recycling will continue to be part of Waste Management’s circular economy.

 

Finishing touches being applied to Redvale’s new generator