Old school New England 92 - Scanorama

Special advertising supplement
» Cambi:
Improving the ecological balance
Converting biodegradable waste
into renewable energy is the
solution to fundamental
challenges in a world where the
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Norwegian advanced technology
and cutting edge expertise is
being exported to large cities
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“Cambi is a company in growth within a
prospering field. We are enthusiastic about our
mission and clients welcome our solutions. We
really feel that we make a difference,” states CEO
Berit Gjellan in Cambi, a company that offer the
most sustainable solutions within recycling of
biodegradable waste products.
IMITATING NATURE
The company creates value from both industrial
and household waste and sewage sludge that
otherwise might be harmful if left untreated on
the local landfill. The biological energy conversion
results in biogas, which is one of the best fuel
alternatives out there, according to Gjellan.
“Biogas is very suitable as fuel for vehicles, with
a clean combustion it produces less hazardous
particles and fumes,” she says and continues: “We
have patented a process that imitates the planet’s
own process of converting biological material into
fuel gas. We speed it up by using high pressure
and temperatures. This treatment has several
advantages, one of them is high conversion rates
into renewable energy,”
The patented treatment creates more gas than
other techniques and the heat the solid residue is
exposed to make it safe to use as a fertilizer. Thus,
this process contributes to a vital recycling of
important nutrients, such as phosphorus, which is
a limited resource on this planet.
Early last summer, Cambi signed a turnkey
contract with the municipality of Oslo to build
their food waste processing plant. “This will be
a new showcase for our technology for advanced
bioenergy conversion from waste to biogas and
fertilizer,” Gjellan ads.
THINK BIG
The company delivers world-leading expertise
within the field and the reason for its note-
Cambi’s personnel combine high professional level with a pleasant and relaxed working environment,
here from left, Harald Kleiven (business developing manager biosolids), Berit Gjellan (CEO), Andrea S.
Mellbye (process engineer) and Wojtech Sargalski (business development manager biowaste).
worthy success outside of Norway is simply scale
economies.
“In order to utilize the biogas in a sensible way,
you need to build large plants. Preferably a
combined sewage treatment and biowaste plant.
This is a challenge when the responsibility for
waste management and wastewater treatment
traditionally are separated and in addition divided
between different municipalities and industries.
Collaboration is the solution, and a good example
is the Ecopro facility in Mid-Norway where we
built a turn-key plant treating both biowaste and
sewage sludge from 51 municipalities,” says Gjellan.
Cambi has also delivered turnkey solution plants
to a series of large cities, like London, Santiago
and Brussels. In total, the company has delivered
25 treatment plants in 14 different countries.
Eight of these plants are located in Scandinavia
and nine plants are built in the UK. Cambi’s
successful reputation is resulting in contracts
throughout the world and Cambi just won a major
contract at the world’s largest advanced wastewater
treatment plant in Washington DC to secure
better economy and to reduce the plant’s carbon
footprint.
INTERNATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE
“Our process disrupts contamination cycles
related to plants, animals and people. Renewable
energy is created, making us less dependent of
fossil energy sources. And finally agricultural land
is enriched rather than deprived,” states Gjellan
who wants to emphasize the fact that Cambi is
continually working on further improving their
state-of-the-art solutions in collaboration with a
network of leading scientific experts in research
institutes at universities in Norway, Sweden,
Denmark and several other countries.
Cambi:
» Established in 1989
» Estimated turnover 2011:
400 million NOK
» Employed personnel: 80
» World-leading within advanced anaerobic
digestion technology
» Has supplied 25 treatment plants in
14 countries
- recycling energy
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