Waste to energy technologies have been presented as one of the avenues to improve the management of solid waste whilst promoting clean and healthy urban environments through the recovery of waste and generation of electricity. Research suggests that with the right investment in technologies and institutional changes, waste can potentially become a resource that can contribute to the Socio-economic development of cities. It is in this context that this paper presents a review of the literature on waste to energy technologies and their implications on sustainable waste management in urban areas. The paper particularly contributes to our understanding of waste to energy technologies and its potential on municipal solid waste management  in the Gauteng province. It is estimated that the City of Johannesburg’s landfills airspace will be completely depleted by the year 2023. This projection becomes a motivation for the identification of suitable waste to energy alternative avenues to manage waste in the province. The paper argues that waste to energy technologies can contribute significantly to sustainable waste management, economic growth, ecological and environmental well-being.

Keywords: Solid Waste Management; Waste-to-energy technologies; Johannesburg; South Africa