Two Danish architecture firms have won an international competition to design the world’s largest waste-to-energy plant in the mountainous outskirts of Shenzhen in southeastern China.
Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects and Gottlieb Paludan Architects say their plant will use the "most advanced technology in waste incineration and power generation and, at the same time, act as a source of education for the citizens of Shenzhen".
The 110,000 square metre Shenzhen East Waste-to-Energy Plant will incinerate 5,000 tonnes of garbage a day, equal to a third of the waste produced by Shenzhen’s 20 million inhabitants.
The winning design organizes the entire plant, including auxiliary buildings, into one circular building, breaking with the traditional rectangular layout of technical facilities.
The circular structure minimises the footprint of the plant while reducing the excavation work required to build on the site.
A landscaped park will be located close to the structure.
The plant will contain a visitor centre and a 1.5km panoramic public walkway on the roof overlooking the landscape and the city of Shenzhen.
The 66,000 square metre roof is designed to be covered by up to 44,000 square metres of photovoltaic panels.
Detailed design work is due to begin in early 2016, and the plant is scheduled to start operating in 2020.
Images via Gottlieb Paludan Architects
