Shanks awarded preferred proponent status for Surrey Organics plant in Canada

Waste-to-product business, Shanks Group, has announced that Iris Solutions, a consortium led by Orgaworld Canada, part of Shanks' Organics division, has been selected as the preferred proponent for the Surrey Biofuels Processing Facility project in Canada.

Shanks will build the plant, which will process 115,000 tonnes of residual kitchen and garden waste from Surrey each year. The process will create a renewable natural gas which can then be used to power the city's natural gas waste collection trucks. The facility will also produce a compost product that will be suitable for landscaping and agricultural applications. Once the facility is operational, Surrey will have the first closed-loop fully-integrated organics waste management system in North America.

Under the contract, Orgaworld Surrey will design, build, maintain and operate the facility. When completed, the facility will be the largest of its kind in Canada with a capacity to process 100% of the city's organic waste, along with commercial organic waste, helping Metro Vancouver achieve its regional 70% waste diversion target. Orgaworld Surrey will also use advanced technology developed from Shanks' current operations in Ontario.

Iris Solutions, led by Orgaworld Canada, was one of three businesses shortlisted for the contract, which originally comprised 11 different bidding companies. The final contracts are expected to be signed in the first quarter of this year, with design-build activities getting underway shortly thereafter. The facility is expected to become fully operational by late 2016.