“The waste incineration project was launched on a large scale during the “13^th Five-Year Plan” period; the investors may not be able to recover the cost with a looming risk of overcapacity in this project. With too many incineration plants and too little garbage to burn, it could affect the operating hours of each plant, leading to significant “sunk assets” similar to the coal industry. ”

— Zhao Ang from REEI interviewed by “China Business News”

 on waste incineration power plants needs

The implementation of strict waste recycling program in Shanghai has been a success, with large drop in the quantity of waste that needs to be incinerated, causing people to question the need of future waste incineration programs and if there would be an overcapacity in this area. “China Business News” published an article on July 14th, 2020, titled “The insufficient utilization of waste incineration power plants”. It invited experts within the field to discuss China’s potential problem with decreasing amount of waste to burn and the discrepancies surrounding waste incineration electricity price subsidy. The co-founder and co-director of REEI, Zhao Ang, was interviewed for the article, expressing his concerns for the rapid speed of over developed waste incineration plants, when China’s waste incineration is already second tier internationally. If the amount of garbage decreases, building more incineration plants could pose the risk of overcapacity.

To read the  article, it is linked: 垃圾发电厂“吃不饱” 部分项目产能利用率不足