4.8 Costs

The costs of building a co-composting facility can vary significantly depending on the chosen method, the cost of land and machinery, and the degree of automatisation. Factors such as including aerators and grinders in the facility’s design can also affect the overall cost.

The main costs are the overall operation requirements, including transport and supply of faecal sludge and bulking materials.

According to the Eawag publication, “Selecting Organic Waste Treatment”, the capital expenditure (CapEx) for a windrow compost facility was moderate at almost 40,000 USD per tonne of treatment capacity. As well as the operational expenditure (OpEx) with almost 500 USD per month and a tonne of treatment capacity.