Displaying items by tag: Power Plant
Saudi Arabia: A new on-site power plant at United Cement Industrial Company's (UCIC) cement plant in Saudi Arabia will be operated and maintained by MAN Diesel & Turbo. MAN Diesel & Turbo was also responsible for building the 54MW power plant, near Jeddah, where five MAN 20V32/44 CR diesel engines provide electrical power for the new cement plant. A five-year contract with UCIC for operation and maintenance includes the option of an extension for another five years.
China International Fund cement plant provides electricity to the Angolan public grid
16 November 2015Angola: China International Fund's (CIF) cement plant in Luanda will provide 50MW of electricity to the Angolan public grid, under a presidential order authorising the purchase of energy. The order said that the power purchase agreement would be valid for ten years, but gave no figures for the amounts involved in the purchase of electricity by state-owned Rede Nacional de Transporte (National Transmission Grid).
"Given that the studies conducted to assess the supply and demand for electricity in the Luanda region indicate a deficit of 400MW, this contract is authorised until structural projects that are underway start operating," said the order authorising the contract with CIF.
The government of Angola is working on several projects that will increase national electricity production, including the construction of two dams by Brazil's Odebrecht. This is the case of the US$4.3bn Lauca hydroelectric facility in Cambambe, Kwanza Norte financed by a credit line from Brazil. From 2017 it will produce 2,070MW of electricity and serve five million people. Another of the works involves increasing the power of the Cambambe hydroelectric facility, in the same municipality, which will increase from 180MW to 700MW and be put into operation in stages during the second half of 2016.
The future Soyo combined-cycle plant, the construction of which is the responsibility of the China Machinery Engineering Corporation (CMEC) and that will cost the Angolan state more than US$900m, will provide electricity to the capital, Luanda, and north of Angola from 2017 onwards.
Emami Cement to build cement plant in West Bengal
23 July 2015India: Emami Cement plans to build a 1.5 – Mt/yr capacity cement plant in Panagarh, Bardhaman, West Bengal, according to the Palestine News Agency. The plan also includes a 10MW captive coal-fired power plant. Land has been allotted by the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC). The estimated cost of the project is US$65.7m.
Nigeria: According to All Africa, Cement Company of Northern Nigeria (CCNN) in Sokoto will invest US$600m to expand its power plant from 12MW to 16MW.
The Bureau of Public Enterprise (BPE) Media head Alex Okoh said that CCNN principal manager of corporate affairs Alhaji Suleiman disclosed this while addressing BPE's post-privatisation monitoring team during a recent visit to the plant. Suleiman said that the expanded plant will be built in partnership with China's CBMI. "CCNN's plant does not generate sufficient power when the plant is run at full capacity utilisation," said Suleiman.
Cemex to develop gas power plants in Mexico
03 March 2015Mexico: Cemex plans to build new power plants in Mexico using natural gas, according to Cemex Energia chief executive Luis Farias. "We are looking to develop a 300MW gas project in the north of the country, near the border with the US," said Farias. Cemex is also looking at a portfolio of three to five 70MW plants, complementing existing installations at its cement plants where it already has access to gas.
Wärtsilä supplies 11 power plants to Eurocement
22 December 2014Russia: Wärtsilä has been contracted to supply power plants for 11 Eurocement cement plants. The project is part of a modernisation program focusing on energy-efficiency and environmental upgrades. The contract was signed in November 2014.
"Wärtsilä's solutions will allow us to create a high technology cement industry in Russia and provide national infrastructure and housing projects with high quality cement," said Eurocement president Mikhail Skorokhod.
The full equipment delivery order consists of 36 natural gas-fired Wärtsilä 34SG engines. The size of the industrial power plants varies from two to five engines, or from 19MW to 48MW. The combined capacity of the power plants will be 314MW. The plants will produce electricity for each cement plant and work in parallel with the electricity grid. All projects are scheduled to be fast-track-delivered during 2015.
"This multi-plant project is nicely in line with our strategy to grow in the industrial sector. Cement manufacturers and other industrial customers recognise the value of reliability of our solutions," said Regional Director Alf Doktar, Wärtsilä Power Plants. Wärtsilä's total installed power generation capacity in Russia is approximately 1000MW.
Mexico: Cemex plans to create an energy division to participate in power generation using natural gas and wind power for self-supply and sale to Mexico's state utility company CFE. Cemex wants a stake in up to seven power generation projects similar to the two it currently relies on, according to CEO Fernando González.
The Monterrey-based company announced in September 2014 that it would seek to increase its power generation capacity, without mentioning specific projects. In April 2014, Cemex completed financing of the US$650m 252MW Ventika wind farm in Nuevo León State, in which it holds a 5% stake. The facility is slated for completion in the second quarter of 2016.
Ventika is expected to supply power to beverage bottler Femsa, steel products firm Deacero, Tecnológico de Monterrey University and Cemex, with more off-takers likely to come onboard in the future. AWS Truepower, a New York-based renewables consulting and engineering services firm, will act as independent engineer to support the construction of Ventika, which will comprise two 126MW parks.
González said that Cemex was exploring project possibilities and searching for partners with the requisite plant management knowledge. "We have already developed energy generation projects in Mexico and in other countries under the self-supply model, because cement production demands a lot of power and there is not enough electricity available," he said.
Colombia: Wärtsilä, a supplier of power plant and ship power solutions and services, has renewed its asset management agreement with Cemex Colombia. The agreement was signed during summer 2014 and it is valid for five years. It is a continuation of an earlier asset management agreement that was signed in 1998.
With this new agreement, Wärtsilä continues to operate and maintain the power plant at Cemex Colombia's cement plant. The agreement covers day-to-day operation of the power plant and the natural gas station (city gate), preventive and predictive maintenance services, management of parts logistics and technical support services. This agreement is a long-term operational partnership with a common goal to ensure maximised lifetime, guaranteed performance and predictable life cycle costs for the power plant.
"We have worked with Wärtsilä for 15 years," said Jairo Guerrero, energy director from Cemex Colombia. "During these years, Wärtsilä has showed excellent performance in ensuring the reliability and availability of our cement factory in Ibagué. Wärtsilä has also introduced innovative upgrades that will further improve the performance and reliability of our power plant. We are happy to continue our long-term partnership with them."
Cemex Colombia's cement plant is powered by five Wärtsilä 34SG engines, with a total capacity of 25MW. The plant is located near Ibagué, a municipality in the Department of Tolima.
Dangote Cement seeks licence for 75MW power plant in Tanzania
05 November 2014Tanzania: Dangote Cement has applied for a licence to build a 75MW coal-fired plant in Tanzania that would power a US$500m cement plant now under construction, Tanzania's energy watchdog has reported.
"Dangote Industries applied for a 75MW electricity generation licence to build, own and operate a coal-based captive power plant adjacent to its cement plant," the state-run Energy and Water Utilities Regulatory Authority (EWURA) said. All the generated electricity will be used to run the plant and associated utilities.
"Any interruption in power supply or unstable voltage/frequency causes extensive damage to the refractory and also to the rotary kiln parts. Refractory failures cause production shutdowns varying from 15 to 30 days and unscheduled use of costly imported refractory bricks," the regulator added.
The Dangote cement plant in southern Tanzania is scheduled to be commissioned in the second half of 2015. With a capacity of 3Mt/yr it will supply Tanzania's domestic market and export to landlocked nations in the region.
National Cement plans US$19m coal fired power plant
05 November 2014Kenya: National Cement is set to build a 15MW coal-fired power plant in Kajiado at a cost of US$19m as part of its expansion plan. The plant will feed its upcoming limestone mining and clinker manufacturing operation in the same location.
National Cement will transport the clinker to its plant in Lukenya, which is being expanded to 1.7Mt/yr capacity from the current 600,000t/yr. National Cement, which produces the Simba cement brand, said that it decided to generate its own electricity because of delays in connecting to the national grid, where power is also more expensive. "The cost of procuring electricity from Kenya Power is twice as much when compared with the cost of generating power using coal," said National Cement.
Electricity supplied from the national grid currently costs an average of US$0.18/kWh. Based on current international coal prices, power generated from coal costs US$0.15/kWh. Coal prices have dropped by 18% since the start of 2014 and a further fall could make energy derived from coal even cheaper. However, the Kenyan government has said that the cost of power form the national grid could halve in the medium term on expansion of the country's generation capacity to 5000MW from the current 1300MW.
Besides seeking lower costs, National Cement has said that it has been forced to construct the coal plant due to Kenya Power's delays in connecting its Kajiado operations. "Kenya Power is also unable to provide power to National Cement within the required time frame (within two years) and only install the electricity in three years' time, while electricity is needed for the clinker manufacture in 24 months' time."
National Cement states that it will import coal from countries like South Africa, but Kenya's move to start mining its own coal could see the firm source the commodity locally in the future. The coal consumption for the proposed power plant is estimated at 63,360t/yr. Saving on energy costs is expected to boost the firm's margins, underlining the importance of lower operational costs in an industry hit by vicious price wars.