Cheap biogas from Murang'a sewage plant

The Murang’a Water and Sanitation Company will generate biogas from a sewage treatment plant serving Murang’a town.

Company Managing Director Daniel Ng’ang’a said the gas will be processed, packaged and sold to residents.

He said the company has concluded feasibility studies for production of cooking gas at Karii treatment plant.

“We want to collect the gas, clean it and remove hydrogen sulphide, which is responsible for the bad smell, and help the Murang’a  get cheaper gas,” Ng’ang’a told the Star in his office on Monday.

He said studies show the gas will be cheaper than LPG gas by about 50 per cent. It is not yet known how much will be processed.

The plant will also produce power to light roads leading to the plant and near Murang’a town. The county and other partners will do the lighting.

The company is also exploring piping the gas to nearby institutions.

Ng’ang’a said the project is one of the many the company is undertaking to increase its earnings.

The company also plans to build a water institute that was at the centre of heated battles between Muwasco and the county government.

The Sh300 million facility is to be established at Kiawambeu water treatment plant. It will offer technical courses on water management.

The company had indicated that its proposal to the Ministry of Water on the institute had been approved and the government has committed to support it by making it a campus of the Kenya Water Institute.

Governor Mwangi Wa Iria dismissed the institute proposal, however, saying the main mandate of the company is to connect residents with water.

The project is too costly, while many people are still not connected to water.

The water company is one of the few that has been able to expand its infrastructure and package water.

Muwasco has established Sh18 million Fort Beverage Industries that process about 5,000 bottles of water a day.

Ng’ang’a said profits from the  projects is ploughed back into Muwasco and used to expand water connections.

“We are covering 92 per cent of our jurisdiction and have managed to reduce waste to an all-time low of 24 per cent,” Ng’ang’a said.

The company has two plants that treat 15,000 cubic metres of water for Murang’a Town and its environs.

Last week, Kericho water and sanitation company visited Muwasco to benchmark on water and environmental conservation.