Bengaluru's Bellandur lake can be a money spinner for Karnataka
Companies from as far as the UK, Israel and Germany has shown interest in the Bellandur lake where tonnes of sewage fermented over decades have transformed it into a massive energy field. Earlier, people thought that the lake was dead and decaying, but actually it has been found to be a storehouse of resources. Everyday, 500 MLD (million litres per day) of sewage that gets dumped into the lake. Ajay Girotra, Managing Director of New Delhi-based firm AG Dauters, which is interested in setting up plants on the lakebed said that this sewage filled with chemicals has the potential to transform the lake into one of the largest energy fields in the world. AG Dauters is one of the many companies that had a couple of round of talks with the government to take up projects there. According to the firm, the lake which provides drinking water for the whole of Bengaluru and Kolar on daily basis – could also light up Bengaluru and New Delhi by generating 5,000 MW of power every day. The firm which plans to use US-German technology to treat the lake, has asked for 2 acres and an agreement from the government that it would buy water, power and fuel from the firm. If the government agrees, then the firm will invest Rs 40,000 to set up its plants on the banks of the lake and actual mining would begin in 10 months giving a new life to the frothing lake Girotra added that they would be using plasma gasification technology which is the most advanced in the world to extract power, water and fuel with zero discharge.