Derby and Derbyshire Waste Treatment Centre

We’re working jointly with Derbyshire County Council on a project to develop proposals for fixing and operating the Derby and Derbyshire Waste Treatment Centre.

The waste treatment centre was built using a combination of gasification and mechanical biological treatment technologies to deal with household waste that Derby and Derbyshire residents either could not or chose not to recycle.

A contract to build and operate the waste treatment centre was brought to an end after the contractor was unable to get the facility up and running. Following extensive work by the two councils to determine the condition and capability of the facility, a business case was drawn-up which looked at two options: fix and operate the facility or decommission it and dispose of household waste using a third party.

In February 2023, both councils took decisions by their respective Cabinets to progress the option to fix and operate on the basis that this was the most cost-effective option for Derby and Derbyshire council taxpayers to provide certainty about the future cost of dealing with Derby and Derbyshire’s waste.

Both councils remain committed to encourage residents to reduce, reuse and recycle more of their waste. 

Two major players in the UK waste market Biffa and Thalia are currently involved in a procurement process and the project team is undertaking dialogue with them.

This marks a significant step in the councils’ joint project to secure a long-term waste management solution for Derby and Derbyshire, ensuring efficiency, sustainability, and value for residents.

We’re currently in the Competitive Dialogue’ phase of the procurement - structured discussions designed to provide equal treatment of both companies to clarify, specify and enhance their proposed solution to fix and operate the facility.

The process enables both the councils and bidders to assess approaches and ensure opportunities that strike the right balance between cost and quality are explored.

Both councils remain committed to a transparent and thorough process to ensure the best possible outcome for waste management in Derby and Derbyshire.

The timeline for the next steps in the project are:

• Competitive Dialogue – due to conclude winter 2025/26 when an agreed commercial position has been achieved
• Contract award (Cabinet decision) – May 2026
• Preservation and due diligence – up to spring 2028
• Rectification with limited amounts of waste accepted for testing – up to summer 2030
• Optimisation with the amount of waste processed increasing up to expected levels – end of 2032
• Completion of commissioning and transition to normal operations – end of 2032

This webpage will be kept up to date with the latest developments throughout the project as the timelines are indicative and will be refined as progress is made.