Kochi Corporation, BPCL-KR at odds over Brahmapuram CBG plant performance

file image of the plant | Photo Credit: H Vibhu

The functioning of the 150-tonne Compressed Biogas (CBG) plant at Brahmapuram remains a bone of contention between the Kochi Corporation and BPCL-KR, the plant operator, more than seven months after it was commissioned.

The Kochi Corporation complains that frequent shutdowns disrupt waste disposal and that the plant is still far from achieving its optimum capacity. BPCL-KR, on its part, blames the poor quality of waste supplied by the Corporation for the recurring breakdowns and the plant’s inability to reach its designed capacity.

Mayor V.K. Minimol contested that the agreement allowed 6% to 8% rejects of the total feed. “The proposal to establish a new plant at Brahmapuram with a capacity to treat 150 tonnes of biodegradable waste became imperative to bridge the shortfall in the treatment capacity of the CBG plant,” she said. The proposal submitted by G3 Renewables Private Limited was approved through voting amid stiff protests from the Opposition Left Democratic Front (LDF) on August 14.