Pioneering waste firm to show Minister 'world first' process

Sterecycle, which has a plant in Templeborough, on the border of Sheffield and Rotherham, has invited Tory Energy and Climate Change Minister Charles Hendry to its site to demonstrate how its technology could work nationally.

The company, which has been operational since August 2008, describes itself as a "clean technology company" and has developed a patented process using steam which treats mixed household waste collected by local authorities.

Managers say the system, known as autoclaving, can reduce the amount of household rubbish and commercial waste which is sent to landfill by up to 70 per cent by treating it with steam which separates out different types of waste.

The company claims that it can separate recyclable materials even from mixed "black bag waste" which is then sent for re-use, while the organic portion can be separated and made into a "sterefibre" which is rich is biomass.

South Yorkshire's local councils have already begun sending some waste to the company, which uses sell the sterefibre either for use as a biomass fuel or to be used as a material to protect land which is being restored after erosion.

Tom Shields, the company's chief executive, said he was delighted that Sterecycle's work had attracted the attention of the Government and said the South Yorkshire plant was the world's first commercial autoclave waste treatment facility.

He added: "Autoclaving as a waste treatment process is safe, cheap to build and our experience to date is that planning permission can be achieved within six months, and it delivers high rates of resource recovery.

"South Yorkshire's local councils and businesses recognise the benefits of using our technology to treat their waste.

It not only decreases the landfill tax payable by our customers but reduces methane emissions which are 23 times more damaging to the environment than carbon monoxide.

"The demand has been so high that we're increasing the Rotherham plant's capacity from 100,000 tonnes per annum to 240,000 tonnes per annum so that we can continue to help drive down the amount of waste going to Yorkshire landfills."

Mr Shields said the company also had plans to build its own biomass power station on the site after receiving planning permission from Rotherham Council. The power plant will provide electricity for use on the site, with excess power being sold into the national grid.

At present, Sterecycle employs 41 people, but the company said it was looking to recruit 16 more workers to start work when the expansion is complete by the middle of next year.

It is working with Sheffield-based training and recruitment firm A4e to find suitable applicants a relationship which A4e's employer services manager Kirstie Royce described as "exciting".

She added: ""We work with thousands of employers but it's particularly exciting for us to work with Sterecycle and secure jobs with a company leading the world on such an important issue.

"We're delighted to have placed eight people with Sterecycle within 12 months, all who are now working at the cutting edge of renewable energy technology, and we look forward to supporting the company as it expands."

Sterecycle also has plans for a new 200,000 tonnes per annum Cardiff plant which is expected to be operational by 2012 and was last month granted permission for a waste treatment and recycling facility at Harlow in Essex.

It is also in the process of developing other sites in the UK, and intends to have a total of six sites operational across the UK by 2016.