Malta Shows Strong Interest in LIST's De-watering technologies

In the framework of its activities in the environmental domain and in the field of green technology, the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST) has developed expertise and cutting edge de-watering technologies that trigger a strong interest in particular from the Republic of Malta. 

Malta is a small but advanced country that is currently revisiting its politics in terms of organic waste management and reuse. Indeed, the country needs to import most of its feed supply thus increasing year by year its import in nutrients (NPK). The country is eager to identify new ways for treating animal and human effluents and to transform water-rich substrates into dry ones readily compatible with the exportation constraints in terms of volume and weight. In other words, Malta is willing to develop and use optimized methods for biodegradable municipal solid waste (MSW) collect and collaborating with Luxembourg might help them achieve the goal on a mid/long term.

Malta & Luxembourg

In November 2016, LIST was pleased to welcome a delegation from Malta in its premises. Together with the Ministry for Agriculture, Viticulture and Consumer Protection of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and the Biogas Vereenegung asbl, LIST organised an engaging 2-day programme for its visitors representing the Ministry for Sustainable Development, the Environment and Climate Change in Malta. The objective of this study visit was to establish a first contact, to share on the respective national waste management strategies in place in the two countries and to share Research, Development & Innovation (RDI) activities that are ongoing in Luxembourg in the field of waste treatment and valorisation into renewable energy and fertilizers. 

Malta & LIST

In this context, the Maltese delegation visited LIST and discovered the institute’s RDI activities in the field of anaerobic digestion applied to agricultural and municipal wastes. Our fellow expert and researcher Dr Philippe Delfosse made a presentation focused on the ways to mitigate global warming by avoiding greenhouse gas (GHG) emission during waste land filling and on how anaerobic digestion can promote circular economy in the food and feed production chains. The equipment at the forefront of technology used by LIST’s Environmental Research and Innovation (ERIN) department was presented to our visitors with a focus on research installations for biogas, as well as the ongoing collaborations with two main Luxembourgish actors: Ama Mundu Technologies developing efficient organic effluent dewatering technologies and the Tank-D technology currently hosted by list to test and fine-tune an innovative way to collect, transport and pre-treat the municipal organic waste prior to their valorisation in biogas plants under the form of energy and fertilizers. The Tank-D pilot installed in LIST’s premises in Foetz (see picture below) triggered a strong interest from the Maltese Delegation. Indeed the technology could perfectly suit the restauration requirements in terms of waste collect and management under warm climate.

The technologies developed by the LIST-Ama Mundu Technologies-Tank-D partnership to facilitate and optimise the collect of MSW and to de-water animal and biogas plant effluents are among the cutting edge solutions available today to respond to Malta’s need in terms of compliance with the European Commission’s directives. This first visit opened the way to forthcoming discussions and meetings to foresee possible collaborations between the two nations and with LIST in the domain of organic waste management and valorisation strategies.

Picture 1: The delegation of Malta at LIST with Dr Philippe Delfosse

Picture 2: First container of the Tank-D technology hosted by LIST in Foetz

Picture 3: A truck of Ama Mudu Technologies (AMT) in front of a biogas unit.