Displaying items by tag: CIMA

Malaysia: Sharuddin Omar Hashim, the managing director of Cement Industries of Malaysia Berhad (CIMA), says that rising input materials, especially coal, are driving up the cost of cement. He blamed the mounting price of coal on Indonesia’s export ban and the war in Ukraine, according to the Malaysian National News Agency. Sharuddin said that coal had previously cost up to US$70/t but it was now US$200/t, with the possibility of reaching US$400/t. Other raw material costs were also reported to have risen sharply due to logistic problems following the Covid-19 pandemic. Sharuddin added that his company is trying to optimise production and reduce production costs through the use of other alternative materials.

Malaysia: Cement Industries of Malaysia Bhd (CIMA), a wholly-owned subsidiary of UEM Group Bhd, is set to be the first cement manufacturer in the country to use tyres and biomass waste as an alternative source of fuel.

CIMA managing director Mohd Yusri Md Yusof said that the company has installed an alternative fuel combustion system from Japan's Taiheiyo Engineering Corporation, which will allow the company to use tyres and biomass waste such as palm kernel shell and empty fruit bunch (EFB) as an alternative source of fuel.

"The move makes CIMA the first cement manufacturer in the country with this technology," said Yusof. He added that using waste as alternative fuel for cement production ensures that waste materials are reused in a responsible manner instead of being disposed of in landfills.

"With this state-of-the-art technology in place, we can reduce energy costs through the utilisation of tyres and biomass up to a maximum of 30%, while at the same time playing an active role in reducing our carbon footprint," said Yusof.

Meanwhile, Plantation Industries and Commodities minister, Douglas Uggah Embas, said that the Malaysian government has identified biomass as one of the growth areas towards creating wealth from waste. "The National Biomass Strategy 2020 outlines the framework and the potential of the biomass in creating higher value-added economic activities. The National Biomass strategy envisages a potential contribution of Gross National Income of US$9.16bn by 2020," said Embas.