Five companies have been shortlisted to pitch their proposal to design, build and operate a waste-to-energy plant in Magħtab. 

Wasteserv did not say who had reached the final stages in the bid to run the  ECOHIVE plant however CEO Richard Bilocca said they were all international market leaders. 

Once built, the plant promises to cover five percent of Malta’s base energy needs and make use of up to 192,000 tons of waste per year, Bilocca said. Operations are set to start in December 2026, he said. 

Originally 11 companies had submitted an application and Wasteserv said the process is running according to schedule. 

The excavation of the site has reached a critical stage, it said.

The site will cover some 30,000 square metres. A small portion of this will be the power plant itself with the rest of the plant working to clean and filter air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, Bilocca said. 

The waste-to-energy facility will treat non-recyclable waste and will be a “game changer in Malta’s waste management potential,” Wasteserv said.

The plant is part of a wider €500 million ECOHIVE project which aims to halt reliance on landfills and introduce a circular economy as waste becomes a resource, it said.