Member Article

Shanks sign £750m Wakefield waste contract

Waste management business Shanks Group plc have signed a 2 year PFI contract with Wakefield Council, in a deal worth £750m.

The contract will see Shanks build a residual waste treatment facility at South Kirkby which will employ a number of processes to treat and recycle waste from the Wakefield District.

Up to 230,000 tonnes per year will be processed at the facility, helping to increase the local authority’s diversion rate by 90%.

Funding has come from the UK Green Investment Bank and a group of banks including Barclays, BayernLB from Germany, and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation from Japan.

250 jobs will be created by construction phase of the deal, and a further 60 permanent positions are expected.

To complement the technologies on site, Shanks will also take over a network of Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs).

Peter Dilnot, Chief Executive of Shanks Group plc said: “We are delighted to have signed this contract with Wakefield Council and look forward to working with the authority and local residents to increase their diversion from landfill. Our solution will help them make more from the waste they produce by increasing recycling, generating green energy and producing compost for land remediation and use by residents.

“We are excited that the Green Investment Bank has chosen this project as one of its first major investments, which will see Shanks draw on experience from across our Group to deliver a genuinely sustainable solution.”

Joanne Roney OBE, Chief Executive of Wakefield Council, added: “This is a big step forward in how a key public service is delivered in the District. The agreement means investment in household waste collection and recycling and more jobs for the District.

“It has been a long journey and at times challenging, but throughout the negotiations we have never lost sight of the need for additional finance to deliver a waste management system for the future.

“I am very pleased that this 25-year contract has now been signed and we can move on to concentrate on the job of improving waste and recycling services for everyone in the District and protecting the environment. I too look forward to working with Shanks and to seeing the new waste management plans come to fruition.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Tom Keighley .