Mumbai: Pali Hill sends power from biogas back to grid

The plant processes around 800-850 kg wet waste from 78 buildings, 23 bungalows and some restaurants in Bandra. File pic

The biogas plant set up by the Pali Hill Residents' Association (PHRA) is working so well, that even after utilising the electricity generated by it to power more than 70 streetlights, it has a surplus supply that is being given back to the power grid. The plant has become a role model for residential societies, which can also process their solid waste on their own Dilip Bhujbal, the technical expert who has been overseeing the project said that the plant generates around 12 units or kilowatts per hour and works for around six hours a day. "On a monthly basis, around 1,100 units are returned to the grid using a process called net metering. A device known as a synchronisation system allows excess power to be put back in the power grid, he said.

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He added that the plant currently supplies electricity to 77 streetlights and can supply to another 38 of them. The plant processes around 800-850 kg wet waste from 78 buildings and 23 bungalows that are part of the association as well as 150-200 kg waste from 6-7 restaurants in Bandra. The BMC garbage compactors pick up the waste and drop it off at the plant. Due to this plant, the BMC saves R10-12 lakh per month that it previously used to transport the waste to landfills. While the plant started functioning in June last year, it wasn't until two months ago that PHRA started giving the surplus power back to Adani Electricity.

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Vaibhav Matkar, another technical expert said, "The surplus electricity was getting wasted since only the streetlights that come under this transformer can utilise it. Thus it was better to put the electricity back into the grid. We started only after we received permission for the net metering process two months ago."

After the success of this initiative, the residents of PHRA are hoping to get the rebate on their property taxes, as promised by the BMC for processing their wet waste. Madhu Poplai, secretary of PHRA said that they are submitting a formal application to civic chief Praveen Pardeshi. "The residential society was the first to start a biogas plant in the city. We have utilised the electricity and are growing vegetables using the compost. All the 78 buildings and 23 bungalows should get this rebate and we are submitting an application along with all necessary documents for the same," she said. The BMC's initiative of offering a maximum 15 per cent rebate was approved by the standing committee, for housing societies that process their waste.

1,100units
The electricity returned to the power grid on monthly basis

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