The Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation has initiated the process to set up a 50 tonne per day (TPD) charcoal plant to convert the city's green waste into a smokeless fuel that could substitute coal, firewood and LPG in commercial and domestic markets. The facility will form part of a 200 TPD municipal solid waste processing complex at Bhuasuni where a bio-mining project is underway to clear legacy waste. Officials indicated the move is driven by an effort to find sustainable alternatives amid a global fuel crisis.

Under the proposal, about 150 tonne of solid waste from the site will be processed and converted into various value-added products, while a separate 50 TPD unit will handle green waste for charcoal production. The charcoal plant is intended to manage ligno-cellulosic fractions such as leaves, branches and other biomass residues that currently lack a dedicated treatment facility in the city. This separation aims to improve resource recovery and reduce reliance on external disposal mechanisms.

BMC officials also said steps are being taken to commission a 25 TPD biomass briquettes facility in Palasuni, which is expected to be made operational in one or two months, although that unit is designed primarily for woody biomass and not soft horticultural residues. The briquettes plant will complement the charcoal unit by processing suitable biomass streams and expanding the range of renewable fuels produced locally. Together these installations are intended to strengthen municipal capacity to manage green and horticulture waste.

The conversion process will use controlled carbonisation to thermally decompose biomass and produce biochar, along with byproducts such as syngas and bio-oil. The resulting charcoal is described by officials as a smokeless, high-calorific-value fuel suitable as a renewable substitute for conventional coal in industrial and commercial applications as well as for domestic use. Project implementation will follow finalisation of land and selection of an implementing agency through a bidding process, a BMC deputy commissioner said.