New waste separation line to be built at Malta’s Ecohive complex

The EUR 2 million investment fits in the National Strategy for the Environment which spells the end of landfills

WasteServ Malta will invest EUR 2 million in a new refuse separation line at its Ecohive complex at the village of Magħtab, site of the largest landfill in the island nation. The company which is responsible for organising, managing and operating integrated systems for waste management, has issued a call for tenders for this project.

Separation of high quality waste for recycling and resale

As public broadcaster TVM reports, the partially EU-funded line, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2021, will separate high quality waste that can be recycled and reused in the production chain. The new line’s processing capacity will be 41 000 tons of diverse material, including different types of metal, cardboard and plastic which will be batched and sold.

The Minister for the Environment, Aaron Farrugia, said while visiting Ecohive that WasteServ’s latest investment will be in line with the goals of the National Strategy for the Environment. The document foresees extracting resources from most of the waste generated in Malta with only 10 percent of refuse ending up in a landfill.  

The future of waste management

Worth half a billion euros, Ecohive is Malta’s largest-ever investment in the waste management sector, which aims to drive the country towards a circular economy. Its name has been inspired by the dual role of bees as pollinators and as honey producers.

The Ecohive complex will consist of four integrated waste management plants. The Waste-to-Energy Facility will be treating 40 percent of non-recyclable waste generated in Malta, preventing its landfill disposal. The Material Recovery Facility will be processing co-mingled recyclables such as paper, plastic and metal, via an automated sorting technology.

The Organic Processing Plant will convert waste into biogas and agricultural compost, using the heat generated by the Waste-to-Energy Facility for pasteurization. The Thermal Treatment Facility will process hazardous discarded materials such as clinical and pharmaceutical waste, generating energy in the form of heat along the way.