It is the cleanest and most-advanced power plant of its kind in North America.

CHARLOTTE, N.C.--The Babcock & Wilcox Company (B&W) (NYSE:BWC) is pleased to announce the grand opening of the Solid Waste Authority (SWA) of Palm Beach Countys advanced waste-to-energy facility, the Palm Beach Renewable Energy Facility 2 (PBREF2).

The facility, owned by the SWA and located in West Palm Beach, Fla., was designed, manufactured and constructed by a consortium of Babcock & Wilcox Power Generation Group, Inc. (B&W PGG) and KBR, Inc. It is the cleanest and most-advanced power plant of its kind in North America. The SWA and the consortium celebrated the facilitys grand opening with a ribbon cutting ceremony on Saturday, June 27.

B&W PGG designed and manufactured the plants three mass-burn, waste-to-energy boilers, capable of generating up to 95 megawatts of electricity, and its environmental control system. The plant features DynaGrate air-cooled and water-cooled combustion grates designed by B&W Vølund and will be operated under a 20 year agreement by B&W PGGs subsidiary, Palm Beach Resource Recovery Corporation, which has operated the adjacent PBREF 1 since 1989.

"We would like to thank and congratulate our customer, the SWA, as well as our consortium partner KBR, for a job well-done," said B&W PGG Global Power Division Vice President Paul Scavuzzo. "The PBREF 2 is truly B&W PGGs flagship project in North America and a shining example of the game-changing potential of waste-to-energy technology.

"Plants like PBREF 2 not only provide valuable energy while drastically reducing the amount of waste we bury, but are also a valuable asset in reducing greenhouse potent gas emissions caused by methane generated in landfills," Scavuzzo said. "With advanced emissions control systems of the kind we installed, these plants can also generate that power cleanly."

"The completion of this state-of-the-art facility represents the culmination of a 10 year effort that virtually ensures to the taxpayers of Palm Beach County that their solid waste will be disposed of in the most efficient and environmentally sensitive method available in the world today long into the future," said SWA Director of Engineering & Public Works, Ray Schauer. "PBREF 2 is a jewel in the crown of SWAs award winning Integrated Solid Waste Management System that will set the standard for performance and environmental sustainability in North America.

"We truly appreciate the thousands of long hours and hard work that it has taken to complete this world class project," Schauer said. "During the struggles of an economic downturn, our partners delivered on their promise to spend locally, with more than $136 million spent with businesses in Palm Beach County and more than $35 million spent with small businesses; and to hire locally, by using more than 1.1 million hours of construction labor by Palm Beach County residents."

PBREF 2 is located on 24 acres adjacent to the countys original waste-to-energy facility, also designed and built by B&W. As the most advanced and cleanest waste-to-energy power plant in North America, PBREF 2 will provide power for an estimated 44,000 homes and businesses while processing more than 1 million tons of post-recycled municipal solid waste each year. This will reduce reliance on the landfill by up to 90%, while also recycling an estimated 27,000 tons of steel, aluminum, copper and other metals annually.

B&W PGGs emissions control technologies, including a selective catalytic reduction (SCR) system, pulse jet fabric filters, spray-dry absorbers (SDA) and continuous emissions monitoring system (CEMS) are designed to capture and control pollutants, including mercury and heavy metals, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and particulates, within permitted levels.

About B&W
Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., The Babcock & Wilcox Company is a leader in clean energy technology and services, primarily for the nuclear, fossil and renewable power markets, as well as a premier advanced technology and mission critical defense contractor. B&W has locations worldwide and employs approximately 11,600 people, in addition to joint venture employees located at projects around the world. Follow us on Twitter @BabcockWilcox and learn more at www.babcock.com.

About the SWA
Forty years ago, the Florida Legislature created the Solid Waste Authority of Palm Beach County, a governmental agency, through the Palm Beach County Solid Waste Act. Since then, SWA has dutifully served Palm Beach Countys residents and implemented an award winning Integrated Solid Waste Management System that takes care of the processing and disposal of the Countys trash and recyclables. This will be the second waste-to-energy facility the SWA manages.