schmidt hammer lassen + Gottlieb Paludan’s winning scheme for giant Shenzhen waste-to-energy plant

A new waste-to-energy plant is in the works for the mountainous outskirts of Shenzhen. Officially called the Shenzhen East Waste-to-Energy Plant, the project is expected to be the world's largest energy plant of its kind.

A Scandinavian architectural squad comprising schmidt hammer lassen architects and Gottlieb Paludan Architects recently won the international competition to design the plant. According to the architects, the giant circular structure will incinerate 5,000 tons of waste per day, equivalent to one-third of the waste generated by Shenzhen's 20 million inhabitants annually.

On top of that, the plant will be open to the public to teach visitors, both local and abroad, to learn about advanced technologies in waste incineration and power generation.

Read on for more about the project from the architects.

"The plant will utilize the most advanced technology in waste incineration and power generation, whilst at the same time act as a source of education for the citizens of Shenzhen. The winning design organizes the entire plant, including auxiliary buildings, into one circular building — breaking with the traditional rectangular layout of industrial facilities.

By proposing a clear circular form, the footprint of the plant is minimised and it reduces the amount of excavation required to build on the site."

"The 66,000m2 roof is designed to be covered by up to 44,000m2 of photovoltaic panels providing the opportunity for the plant to not only provide a cleaner way to deal with the city’s waste but also contribute to the renewable energy provision for the city.

The plant is intended to showcase the Waste-to-Energy production as an important technical process that is geared to deal with the issues of growing waste, as well as the issue of finding more environmentally friendly ways of generating electricity.

At the same time, visitors become informed on the challenge of the growing amounts of waste we produce every day and are also educated on initiatives on how to reduce their own amount of daily waste."

In the coming months, the architects will continue to further develop their scheme. if all goes smoothly, the plant will start operating in 2020.

Project credits

Architects: Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects; Gottlieb Paludan Architects
Structural Engineer: Schlaich Bergerman Partners
Client: Shenzhen Energy Environmental Engineering Ltd.
Area: 112,645 m2
Competition: 2016, 1st prize, international competition
Visuals: Beauty & the Bit, Madrid and Ginsun, Shanghai
Model: JR Models, Shanghai

More project images in the gallery below. Also take a gander at more schmidt hammer lassen architects projects here.