Greater Lyon has awarded Veolia, which has a long-standing presence in the area, a major contract to modernize and manage the Saint Fons wastewater treatment facility, one of the largest in France. This six-year agreement is valued at 100 million euros.
Having been operational for nearly fifty years, the plant processes wastewater from all residents on the left bank of the Rhône River, along with some regional industrial facilities, serving an equivalent of one million people.
Veolia was selected to tackle several challenges: achieving compliance with biological treatment standards, enhancing asset conditions, and managing heavy rainfall events that can cause pollution, all in close collaboration with local authorities.
Greater Lyon also aims to establish this site as a benchmark for operational efficiency, energy use, and environmental performance.
Veolia has mobilized its full range of expertise to deliver an integrated solution that aligns with these objectives while ensuring optimal cost-effectiveness:
- Thanks to more efficient digitized management, Veolia will enable the site to reduce its electricity consumption by 15% and its water consumption by 10%.
- The site’s carbon footprint will be significantly reduced, as 90% of its energy consumption will be covered by decarbonizing energy produced from Veolia’s energy recovery facilities. The recovery of waste heat from incinerators will also produce 6% of the site’s electricity needs, thus replacing fossil fuels.
- Veolia will draw on its technical innovation capabilities to face emerging pollutants such as PFAS, particularly in sewage sludge, and prepare the region for future regulatory changes.
- Veolia will also support Greater Lyon in its soil return strategy, with a future pooling of sludge treatment by methanization at the neighboring wastewater treatment plant.
“With our longstanding presence in the region, we are honored to have been selected by the Lyon metropolitan area to transform the Saint Fons wastewater treatment plant into an environmental frontrunner. Through more efficient management and the integration of our diverse services, we have crafted a solution that balances ecological and economic performance, significantly lowering its carbon footprint and raw material consumption. The ecological transformation of Saint Fons highlights our capability to deliver tangible solutions for a sustainable future in partnership with local communities, fully aligned with our GreenUp strategic plan,” states Jean-François Nogrette, Senior Executive Vice President, France & Special Waste Europe.
Source :Veolia
