The Damongo Integrated Recycling and Compost Plant Limited (IRECoP) is set to go into operation immediately after electrical power is connected to the facility.
The facility was commissioned by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo but was foisted with setbacks when the electrical engineer, for one reason or the other, failed to deliver on time for work to start.
This compelled management of the Jospong Group of Companies to terminate his contract and award it to another contract.
So far the powerhouse has been contracted, polls have been mounted and the power lines put up to the company premises and awaiting the connection to the national grid.
Zoomlion Zonal Manager for the Savannah Region, Salisu Abdul Mubarak, disclosed this to members of the Parliamentary Press Corps (PPC) when the team toured the facility for an update on the progress of work.
The PPC has been toured the IRECoP facilities being constructed across the country by Zoomlion Ghana Limited, a subsidiary of the Jospong Group in collaboration with the government.
Mr. Salisu explained the equipment at the facility is a mobile unit and not as sophisticated as those of the Northern Region or the Volta Region and there is ready to commence operation.
According to him, a successful test run has already been conducted and the facility is ready to begin receiving refuse for recycling.
“The facility has been commissioned by the President and is ready to begin processing garbage but the delay by the electrical contractor to deliver on time has delayed the work.”
“However, a new contractor is now working on that and has completed all the basic works. We are now waiting for the Northern Electricity Department of the Volta River Authority to connect the facility to the national grid,” he stated.
A representative of Malpoma Limited, George Coomson, together with Mr. Salisu Abdul Mubarak and the West Gonja Municipal manager for Zoomlion, Yusuf Abdulai, conducted the team round the facility.
He indicated the facility can process 200 tons of waste a day and will create about 150 direct and indirect jobs for the people of Damongo.
At the Northern RegioinI RECoP located at Sagnirigu, work is progressing steadily and even though the equipment for the recycling of solid waste has not been installed, workers are feverishly preparing the place for the machines.
The Tamale facility also has separate medical waste and liquid waste units whose constructions have been completed and awaiting the installation of equipment.
Zoomlion Northern Regional manager, Mr. Peter Dawuni who conducted the team around said the facility is meant to process the solid waste generated in Tamale and its environs and has the capacity to process 400 tons per day.
“This will be serving the Tamale metropolis, Tolon, Kunbumgu, Sagnarigu and other surrounding MDAs.”
“We will feed the inputs we receive from the communities into the facility to process into compost, which will be useful for agricultural purposes in the country and other by-products.”
“We expect the civil works to be completed and the plant brought in and installed within the first quarter of 2023 so it can be commissioned to begin operation,” he stated.
The Regional Waste Landfill manager, Mr. Stephen Yarro, indicated the area already serves as the landfill site for the Tamale area and therefore needs to be completed on schedule.
According to him, recycling the trash before sending it to the landfill site will protect the environment while the compost will also boost the farming activity in the region.