Homes in the Black Country could be powered by rubbish treated at a new waste energy plant which is set to be operational in the next few years.
The Walsall Energy From Waste facility, in Fryers Road, has ambitions to partner up with the West Midlands Combined Authority and local councils to help export heat to homes in the form of steam or hot water.
Rubbish collected to power the plant will come from a range of local and regional waste management companies.
The facility itself will replace the region's ageing fleet of incinerators which are due to be retired over the coming years.
The aim is to turn up to 436,000 tonnes of non-recyclable waste every year into 49 megawatts of electricity by combusting non-hazardous waste otherwise destined for landfill.
The plant will be built by energy recovery specialists Encyclis on eight acres of derelict land and that company will also own and operate the facility.
Up to 450 jobs will be contracted during the construction phase of the plant and 50 direct roles once it is fully operational from 2027. Financial close on the scheme was reached last month and construction work is due to start imminently.
An initial offer of funding worth £7.5 million was made by the combined authority but it was later decided the capital was not needed.
Owen Michaelson, chief executive of Encyclis, said: "We thank West Midlands Combined Authority for supporting this project which was crucial in enabling us to begin preparatory groundworks to transform this brownfield site.
"We are making this investment to provide Walsall and surrounding communities with a state-of-the-art public hygiene facility that will treat the area's residual waste, generate baseload electricity and open up opportunities for sustainable district heating.
"In doing so, our energy recovery facility will directly contribute to economic regeneration, creating skilled jobs and encouraging green innovation."
The offer had been made by the combined authority as part of its brownfield-first programme which is striving to regenerate the region's derelict industrial sites for new homes and commercial work spaces.
West Midlands Mayor Andy Street added: "This important initiative will power homes here in Walsall at the same time as helping us to maintain our net zero commitment. "The Fryers Road site being brought forward by Encyclis is an innovative example of how we can turn waste into energy.
"It's great news that this scheme is set to create more than 400 local jobs and I look forward to seeing residents benefit from projects like this in the months and years ahead."
Hitachi Zosen Inova, a specialist in energy-from-waste engineering, will be the principal contractor.
