California Waste Solutions Plans $500 Million Vietnam Waste-to-Energy Project

California Waste Solutions, through its subsidiary Vietnam Waste Solutions, is proposing a waste-to-energy project requiring more than $500 million in new investment at the Da Phuoc Integrated Waste Treatment Complex in Ho Chi Minh City. The planned facility would process 3,000 tonnes of municipal waste per day and generate 60 MW of electricity, while reducing remaining ash and residue to around 5%. The project has completed documentation, technical and financial planning and technology selection, but construction will only begin after investment-policy approval, with operations targeted within 18 to 24 months after approval.

 

The Project Builds on an Existing 10,000-Tonne Waste Complex

 

Da Phuoc covers 128 hectares and is designed to handle up to 10,000 tonnes of waste per day, equivalent to around 70% of Ho Chi Minh City’s municipal solid waste. It currently receives approximately 4,500 to 5,000 tonnes a day based on the city’s waste allocation.

The existing complex already includes a landfill gas-to-energy plant capable of generating up to 12 MW, a 3,000-cubic-metre-per-day leachate treatment facility and a 600-tonne-per-day sorting and recycling plant. The proposed waste-to-energy development would add a much larger energy-recovery component alongside those existing operations.

 

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Waste-to-Energy Would Add 60 MW of Generation

 

The new facility is planned as a separate investment from the capital already committed to Da Phuoc. It would use advanced incineration technologies to process municipal waste while recovering electricity, with the company targeting around 60 MW of generating capacity.

California Waste Solutions also plans to reduce the amount of ash and residue left after incineration to roughly 5%, although achieving that figure will depend on the final technology and operating performance. Remaining material is intended to be reused in construction products and supplementary fuels rather than sent directly to landfill.

 

The Company Is Linking Waste Infrastructure With Vietnam’s Net-Zero Goals

 

Vietnam Waste Solutions is positioning the project as part of Vietnam’s transition towards lower-carbon waste management and its national net-zero target for 2050. Ho Chi Minh City is also pursuing its own near-term environmental goals, increasing pressure to move waste treatment away from conventional landfill disposal.

“We are really excited about the new waste-to-energy plant expansion, having already proved that it works at a much smaller level over the past few years for our own plant,” said Michael Duong, President of California Waste Solutions.

 

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AI and Robotics Are Also Being Brought Into Waste Operations

 

The company plans to transfer more of the sorting and recovery technology used at its California facilities into Vietnam, including AI- and robotics-assisted recycling. High-capacity drones are also scheduled to begin operating at Da Phuoc in October 2026 for sanitation and odour-control applications.

That technology push reflects a broader strategy of increasing material recovery before and after waste treatment rather than relying only on energy generation. If implemented as planned, the facility would combine sorting, recycling, landfill-gas recovery, water treatment and waste-to-energy within the same complex.

 

Approval Is the Main Barrier Before Construction Begins

 

The project has completed its documentation, engineering and financial planning stages, but investment-policy approval remains outstanding. That means the more than $500 million development should still be treated as proposed rather than committed construction spending.

Once approval is secured, California Waste Solutions expects the project to become operational within 18 to 24 months. The main test will be whether the planned 3,000-tonne daily processing capacity and 60 MW generation target can be delivered while meeting the company’s stated goals for ash reduction, recycling and environmental controls.