A PROCESS FOR RECYCLING WASTE THROUGH PLASMA GASIFICATION AND CONVERTING IT INTO ENERGY AND OTHER VALUABLE PRODUCTS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Recovered Energy Inc. (REI), an affiliate of Recovered Energy Funding Corporation (REFCO) is a project development, engineering and construction management company that has designed a system for converting any type of waste into electricity and other usable products with a 99.9% conversion rate and virtually no residuals.  The Recovered Energy System™ offers the first real long-term solution for the disposal of all types of waste.

The objective of the Business Plan is to provide a comprehensive, financially attractive solution to long term waste disposal issues facing municipalities, with a positive environmental impact in a format that is economically viable for the long-term and provides meaningful humanitarian benefits to the community for the life of the project.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

REFCO proposes to supply an Integrated Plasma Gasification Combined Cycle (IPGCC) Plant capable of processing a variety of waste streams and producing electricity, glass and other valuable products.  Optionally, the Plant can be configured to produce pure distilled water from steam or the glass can be converted into ceramic products. The Power Plant can be either a 50 cycle turbine (Option A) or a 60 cycle turbine (Option B):

Units Option A Option B
Waste processing capacity tons/day 2,500 2,500
Power produced from the waste (A) mWh 95-105 93-105
Power produced from fossil fuel mWh 105-147 110-177
Total power produced (B) mWh 205-252 203-282
Distilled water capacity (D) m3/day 30,000 30,000
Ceramic capacity (E) tons/day 400 400
Employees required (C) each 340-420 340-420

(A) The power produced from the waste will vary depending on the moisture content and characterization of the waste.  The waste does not necessarily utilize all the turbine capacity.  The difference between the total power produced and the power produced from waste comes from a fossil fuel such as natural gas or diesel fuel.
(B) The total power produced is the total net power after deducting the plant’s internal load, adjusted for altitude.   Option A is a 50 cycle turbine and Option B is a 60 cycle turbine.
(C) The exact number of employees will depend on productivity, employment philosophy, wage rates and other factors.
(D) The distilled water is the maximum size of plant that is offered.  The actual size of unit used will depend on the need for water, the budget available and other factors.
(E) The ceramic capacity is the maximum offered capacity for the ceramic plant.  The actual size of the Plant will depend on the budget available and other factors.
 
PROJECT OWNER/MANAGEMENT

The Funding Program offered in this Business Plan requires that the physical title to the Plant facility will be owned and held by Recovered Energy Funding Corporation.  REFCO will ensure that the ownership of the Plant will be acceptable under Local Foreign Ownership Regulations.  A separate entity will be selected (which can be the Municipality, a company owned by the Municipality, a private company or a publicly held company) to operate the business.


PROJECT COST

The Project cost is $1 Billion Dollars for either Option A or Option B. The number of features that are available will vary from Plant to Plant.

PROJECT FUNDING

The entire Project Funding (hard costs and soft costs) is arranged by REFCO at no cost to the Municipality.  

PHASED CONSTRUCTION

The Project will be completed in two phases.  Phase I includes the Power Plant, water distillation system (if included), office building and engineering for Phase II.  The Power Plant and Water Distillation Plant will be operational in 22-26 months and the Power Plant will begin producing electricity using a fossil fuel (preferably natural gas).  Phase II takes place concurrently with Phase I but requires more time to complete.  Phase II includes the balance of Plant and will be operational about 6-12 months after Phase I is complete.  Once Phase II is complete the Power Plant will switch from operating on fossil fuel to operating on a combination of synfuel from the waste and fossil fuel.  This approach allows the Plant to begin generating revenues as quickly as possible.

PRODUCTS PRODUCED

The Plant can be configured to produce the following products.  The final selection of products produced will vary slightly depending on the plant location, the needs of the community and the options selected:

 Between 800 kW to 1,200 kW of electricity for every ton of waste processed, depending on the moisture content of the waste, type of waste and other factors.   The total nameplate capacity of the Power Plant will be between 180 to 250 mWh, depending on whether it is a 50 cycle or 60 cycle turbine, the altitude, the turbine supplier, and other factors.  The turbine will first be used to produce power from the synfuel produced from the waste.  Whatever capacity is remaining will be used to produce power from natural gas or diesel fuel.
 Vitrified glass equal to the inorganic content of the waste, which can range from 10% to 25%.  The glass can be used to produce various building materials, such as building blocks, decorative pavers, roof tiles, floor tiles or concrete aggregate.   The glass can also be used to produce a variety of ceramic products.  
 Up to 2,900 gallons (11.1 cubic meters) of purified, distilled water for every megawatt of electricity produced.  Low pressure steam from the process is used to distill an independent source of water.  The Water Distillation Plant is tied to the Power Plant—not the Gasification Plant and the water produced has no interrelation with the waste.  
 Recycled metal, hydrochloric acid and several options of sulfur products.


PROJECT REQUIREMENTS

 Contracts for the supply of waste purchase of electricity and purchase of water (if the water option is selected).
 Raw water of almost any quality for the distillation unit equal to approximately five to eight times the amount of distilled water produced (if the water option is selected).
  Natural gas and/or diesel fuel (as per spec) for the Power Plant to utilize the excess power capacity.
 Land—approximately 35 ha (80 acres).  This is the amount of land we would like to have, allowing for expansion and room for some of the other features.  The Plant can fit on less land if the land is not readily available.
 Raw materials—coke (3-5% of waste input), silica (2-4% of waste input), sodium hydroxide (varies based on desired sulfur products produced) and miscellaneous water treatment chemicals.

SOURCES OF REVENUE

The Plant Operation will receive the following fees from the Municipality or its separate contracting agency:  

 A tipping fee for each ton of waste that is delivered to the Plant.  There will be a basic rate for municipal waste and yard waste.  Other types of waste may carry higher fees.  
 A fee for the electricity.  
 A fee for the distilled water (if applicable).
 The glass or ceramic products as well as the other byproducts will be sold based on market value.


ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

The Project will have a positive impact on the environment.

 The Project eliminates the need for a landfill for the waste that is processed in the facility.
 The emissions from the Plant are significantly below EPA standards.  
 The electricity produced from synfuel does not release new or additional greenhouse gases into the environment or damage natural fishing and wildlife habitats as Fossil Fuel and Hydro Power Plants do.
 The Plant is capable of processing all types of waste including hazardous waste, medical waste, PCB’s and other types of waste that are damaging to the environment.
 The Plant is clean and aesthetic, eliminates the odor from the waste, eliminates unsightly landfills, does not reduce the value of the surrounding land and makes land available for more productive use.

FINANCIAL SUMMARY  

The Plant will generate an annual profit subject to agreed pricing and volumes.  Based on a conservative pricing forecast for the Plant outputs, the annual Operating Profit is projected to be in excess of $40 Million Dollars.  The actual Operating Profit may vary depending on wage rates, construction costs, raw material costs and other factors.  

BENEFITS OF THE PROJECT

 Extremely beneficial source of project financing
 Long-term source of revenue for humanitarian projects
 Solution to waste problems
 Creation of good secure jobs
 Development of a new industry
 Reduced burden on landfills and reduction of the hazards of landfills
 Improved environment

This Project will provide a unique and rare opportunity for a Municipality to be on the leading edge of technology in a way that removes the technological, political and financial risks typically associated with projects of this nature and size.

TECHNOLOGY OVERVIEW

REI has considered all the technical issues very carefully and has done the following to assure the Licensee that the technical risks have been addressed:

1. The Plasma Gasifier was designed based on the largest Gasifier that Westinghouse has built in the past. The REI Gasifier has been designed based on a Plant built by Westinghouse for General Motors and which operated continuously for thirteen (13) years. GM used the system to melt iron, but the reactor base design, torch design and power supply is identical. Each Gasifier Module is capable of processing 500 tons of MSW per day.

2. The Power Plant is the identical Plant that has been used for many years in the Coal
Gasification Industry with almost identical synfuel.

3. The Gas Cooling System is standard off-the-shelf equipment that has operated for many years with identical conditions.

4. The Gas Cleanup System is standard off-the-shelf equipment that has operated for many years with identical conditions.

5. The Gas Compression equipment is standard off-the-shelf equipment that has operated for many years with identical conditions.

6. The Water Treatment System is standard off-the-shelf equipment that has operated for many years with identical conditions.

7. The tipping floor is a standard tipping floor with conventional material handling equipment.

8. The Recovered Energy Team includes Westinghouse Plasma Corporation, the patent holder and developer of the Plasma Gasification Process; General Electric, the largest turbine supplier in the world; Innovative Steam Technologies, the world leader for once-through steam generators and the subsidiary of the largest construction company in Canada; TurboSonic, an affiliated company with Hamon, Research Cotrell, the largest pollution control company in the world; Kobelco, the largest gas compression company in the world and Power Engineers, one of the top 10 (ten) engineering companies in the US. The actual construction and installation of the Plant will be done by a large general contractor, preferably one that is local. REI has assembled a dynamic and powerful construction team to insure that everything goes smoothly.

REI and its Project Team have taken every precaution possible to verify and make sure all the components compliment each other, and work together properly and efficiently. REI and other members of the Project Team have performed thousands of computer models and have researched numerous items of equipment to make sure that the Plant design is complete and accurate.