Edmonton, Alberta – Edmonton will be home to the world’s first industrial-scale facility to produce biofuels from municipal solid waste, following the signing of a 25-year agreement between the City, ethanol producer GreenField Ethanol, and biofuels technology company Enerkem.

The $70 million facility will initially produce 36 million litres of biofuels per year and reduce Alberta’s CO2 footprint by more than six million tonnes over the next 25 years, the equivalent of removing 12,000 cars off the road each year.

“This facility is another fine example for the world that Alberta is a great place for companies to bring newly commercialized technology to the marketplace,” said Doug Horner, Minister of Advanced Education and Technology. “All of the partners can be pleased that they are part of a facility that is taking a lead role in developing innovative technologies and making a real difference for the environment.”

The City of Edmonton and the Government of Alberta, through the Alberta Energy Research Institute, are contributing $20 million to the facility. The City of Edmonton will also contribute $50 million to a related processing facility and research facility.

“This unique partnership with private companies and the provincial government builds on our global leadership in municipal waste management,” said Edmonton mayor Stephen Mandel. “It will enable us to make a noted contribution to reducing greenhouse gases and become the first major city in North America to achieve 90 per cent residential waste diversion from landfill.”

The plant is the first to be announced by the Ontario-based GreenField Ethanol and Quebec-based Enerkem since the recent announcement of their partnership to jointly design, build and operate commercial next-generation ethanol plants.