Logging ban fuels demand for water firm�s briquettes

The temporary ban on logging have been a boon for the Nakuru Water and Sanitation Services Company (Nawassco). Its briquettes business is now roaring more than before as households seek alternative sources of fuel.

The business that kicked off a year ago involves making the fuel from human waste tapped from the sewerage system.

Nawassco Site Manager John Irungu says they produce two tonnes of the fuel monthly which is way below the current demand of about five tonnes.

�We sell the briquettes at Sh30 per kilogramme and the demand has gone high in the past few weeks from across the country,� says Mr Irungu.

Initially, he says one of the by-products needed was the sawdust which is used as a biomass.

However lack of sawdust forced them to use alternative biomass which include coffee husks, macadamia shells, wheat husks, water hyacinth, coconut husks and pineapple leaves and rice husks.

�Through our experiments, we have also found bagasse suitable for the purpose,� he says.

He notes that although the briquettes can be made 100 per cent from human waste, adding the biomass ensures that it lights faster and has more intense heat.

To meet the rising demand, the company has embarked on expansion of the production plant, a project that involves installing modern equipment.

�With the up scaling, we shall be able to produce 10 tonnes of briquettes in a day and thus meet the increasing demands from our customers,� says Mr Irungu.

He notes that once the expansion is complete, Nawassco will register the enterprise as a subsidiary company.

�We shall also be targeting the wholesale market while expanding sales to retail buyers,� he says.

The firm�s sanitation and hygiene advisor Lawrence Kimaru says the sludge used in making briquettes is treated and burned under very high heat to get rid of harmful components. The biomass available is mixed with the sludge from the human waste at a ratio of 1:1.

�We receive more than 30,000 litres of the sludge waste daily but only a little is used in the making of the fuel. This is due to the limited capacity that we have at the moment,� says Mr Kimaru.

The waste is delivered through the sewerage system and the rest delivered by more than 60 trucks.

The firm, which has 10 employees, is also looking to sell some of the byproducts which include tar, that can be used for tarmacking and vinegar used as a wood preservative.

The company targets schools and hotels which use a lot of energy.

�This will also see replacing of fuels that emit a lot of carbon with clean and efficient fuels,� he adds.

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