Study says 122 TWh of power-from-waste in Africa possible in 2025

The total waste generated in Africa has the potential to produce up to 122.2 TWh of electricity in 2025, according to a study co-authored by the Joint Research Centre (JRC).

This is more than 20% of Africa's electricity consumption of 661.5 TWh in 2010 and would be enough to meet the energy needs of 40 million local households in 2025.

In Africa, where many people do not have access to energy, urban waste can be a valuable source of electricity, the European Commission's in-house science service said on Monday. Energy recovered from waste could also help minimise the impact of municipal solid waste on the environment.

Because waste management on the continent is poor, however, the potential electricity production from waste actually collected is estimated at 83.8 TWh in 2025, which would still be equivalent to the needs of 27 million families.

The JRC said that electricity-from-waste generation could have a significant effect particularly in countries with low access to electricity and reduced electricity consumption per capita such as the Central African Republic, Burundi, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Sierra Leone, Rwanda and Somalia.

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