Displaying items by tag: Coal
37 cement companies apply for coal licences
15 February 2016Egypt: 37 companies have applied for licences to use coal at cement plants, according to the Industrial Development Authority (IDA). IDA Head Ismail Gaber said that the new licenses aim to increase investments in the cement industry to meet local consumption.
Minister of Industry Tarek Qabil announced in January 2016 that licences would be issued to establish 14 new coal-fired cement factories in nine governorates in Beni Suef, Minya, Qena, Sohag, Aswan, New Valley, Suez, Marsa Matruh and South Sinai. Together these plants will have a cement production capacity of 28Mt/yr. The deadline for receiving offers from companies is 10 May 2016.
Egypt: Suez Cement plans to spend US$77m to convert its Helwan and Torah cement plants to use coal and refuse derived fuel (RDF), according to local media. The Kattameya and Suez cement plants were converted in 2015.
The company intends to start the conversion process in February 2016 at Helwan and July 2016 at Torah. The upgrade is expected to take 12 - 18 months. Subsequently both plants would use 70% coal for their energy. Helwan Cement will supplement this with 20 – 25% RDF and 5% natural gas. Torah Cement will use 30% heavy fuel oil. These conversions are expected to reduce the company's operating costs.
South Valley Cement to convert to coal for US$14m
01 February 2016Egypt: South Valley Cement has signed a contract with Sinoma CDI to convert its plant to coal burning for US$14m. The contract is expected to be complete by April 2017. In August 2015 South Valley Cement signed a US$38m contract for Sinoma to build a grinding line for the plant.
Egyptians Against Coal want to eradicate its use by 2017
10 November 2015Egypt: An independent local coalition called Egyptians Against Coal (EAC) aims to advocate excluding coal use from Egypt's energy and cement industry by 2017 due to its 'hazardous environmental threats,' according to a statement from the group released on 10 November 2015.
In mid-September 2015, the Ministry of Environment approved studies made by seven cement factories to use coal in their production process instead of natural gas. The factories include those of LafargeHolcim, Suez Cement (Italcementi) and Arabian Cement, among others.
Suez Cement has announced that it plans to convert two more of its plants to use alternative energy sources, at a total cost of US$37 - 50m each. The company is aiming to convert the Tora and Helwan plants to use coal and a heavy fuel oil known as mazut, following in the footsteps of the Kattameya and Suez plants in the last few months.
During a meeting, the EAC discussed potential ways to raise awareness and advocacy on both the level of individuals and decision makers. The initiative brings together researchers, economists, lawyers, as well as journalists who are interested in environmental issues.
"We are about to issue a booklet that illustrates everything related to coal use and another booklet about alternative energy resources to produce clean energy," said Amena Sharaf, a researcher at the Egyptian Centre for Economic and Social Rights (ECESR).
According to the EAC, coal use in some factories caused severe harm for its labour force and their families living nearby. It claims that workers 'do not know about friendlier energy alternatives that could be used.'
The use of coal in Egypt raised many concerns on both the local and official levels when the idea was first suggested, including among then-minister of environment Laila Iskandar. The amendments stated that coal will be used on a 'large scale' without stating a definitive number on the industries in which it will be used.
Dangote Cement in Tanzania coal deal
20 October 2015Tanzania: Dangote Cement has signed two agreements that will enable its US$600m cement plant in Tanzania to generate 150MW from coal.
One agreement is with Tancoal. Dangote Cement has also signed a coal prospecting licence for a site in Mbinga. However, the plant will first run on diesel until it is able to generate its own electricity from coal.
The deals ends a year-long dispute between the government and the cement plant after Tanesco failed to provide electricity. The plant was considering importing coal from South Africa, which was a cheaper option than buying it from the area.
The cement plant is expected to reduce cement prices by 50% once production commences in early 2016. It will take advantage of the growing construction industry, which contributes 12.5% to the country's GDP. It will offer more than 1500 direct jobs and 9000 indirectly.
Jaypee Cement wins major coal block
14 August 2015India: The third tranche of coal auctions that came to an end on 13 August 2015 included the successful US$281m bid for the Majra mine in Maharashtra by Jaypee Cement. This translates to US$18.89/t.
Egypt/Sudan: According to Daily News Egypt, Qalaa Holding for Investment has signed an agreement with Financial Holding International (FHI) to sell FHI some of Qalaa's units. This is in line with Qalaa's aim to exit from some of its non-basic businesses and to reduce its consolidated debts of US$105m.
Qalaa will sell FHI its stakes in MENA Homes, Grandview and Dina Farms Land Companies, which will be separated from Dina for Agricultural Investments. In return, Qalaa will buy FHI's stakes in several affiliated companies, including cement producer ASEC Holding, as well as Taqa Arabia and Mashreq Petroleum in the energy sector. Qalaa will also buy FHI's stakes in Nile Logistics International in the Transport and logistics sector, Dina Farms Supermarkets in the retail sector and United Company for Foundries (UCF) in the metallurgical industry sector. The deal is expected to be finalised by December 2015, after the customary conditions and requirements are met.
Abdallah El-Ebiary, managing director of Qalaa's cement division, said that the cement sector is a main strategic area for Qalaa and that it has no intention of exiting it, nor the transport and energy sectors. He added that FHI plans to build a new pulveriser mill at the ASEC Cement plant in Minya, Egypt within the company's plan to convert to alternative energy due to the energy deficit and gas crisis. The cost will be US$30.2m and it will be built in the fourth quarter of 2015. "The company's strategy for the next period is to diversify to new and cheap energy sources instead of the traditional and unavailable sources. The investment cost is at US$30.2m, with US$1.31m for a pulveriser mill and US$11.8m for alternative fuel production," said El-Ebiary.
Qalaa also plans to increase the production capacity of its Takamol cement plant in Sudan from 430,000t/yr to 800,000t/yr in 2016. Qalaa aims to establish a new coal mine for the plant. The plant is 51% owned by ASEC Cement and 49% controlled by the Sudanese Social Security Investment Authority (SSIA), the entity that manages all pension funds in Sudan.
Egypt: Investments worth US$30bn in the coal industry are expected to be conducted within the next five years, according to Egypt's investment minister Ashraf Salman.
Salman said that there is 'full coordination' between the ministries of environment, electricity and investment to adhere to international environmental standards when using coal. Egypt's cabinet announced new rules on coal use in April 2015, which stipulate that coal imports can only take place after approval from the ministry of environment. The new rules are an amendment to a law on environmental affairs and allow the use of coal for cement, iron and steel, coke and aluminium production and in power plants.
Salman said that using coal as an energy source would decrease the dependency on natural gas as a primary energy source and petroleum products in steel and cement production. Despite the energy crisis, which has caused frequent and numerous power outages for years, the cabinet's approval of new coal use has caused controversy both within the government and outside.
90% of Egyptian cement plants agree to use coal
12 May 2015Egypt: 90% of cement plants have agreed to use coal to increase their cement production, according to Egypt's Industrial Development Authority.
The authority is facilitating plant upgrades to enable coal use and ensuring that the necessary quantities of coal can be supplied, according to the head of the Industrial Development Authority, Ismail Gaber. He added that Egypt needs more than 32Mt/yr of cement to meet the needs of the domestic market.
In light of the population increase, the demand on energy has significantly increased in Egypt in recent years. The government agreed to include coal in the cement industry energy system in April 2014. Prior to that, coal was used only in the iron and steel, coke and aluminium industries. It is now also allowed to be used for electricity and cement production.
This week Beijing announced that it would close the last of its four largest coal-fired power plants, the China Huaneng Group Corp's 845MW power plant, in 2016. The four coal-fired plants will be replaced by four gas-fired plants with 2.6 times more electricity capacity than the former coal plants. China's policy makers are also encouraging increased use of hydroelectric power, solar and wind and is trying to restart its nuclear power programme.
In the same week, the Independent reported that Costa Rica had achieved a renewable energy milestone, having used 100% renewable energy for the preceding 75 days. The achievement was reportedly made possible by heavy rainfall, which powered four hydroelectric plants. Costa Rica has an impressive track record when it comes to energy sources. In 2014, 80% of its energy came from hydropower and 10% came from geothermal energy. In total, 94% of its energy requirements were met by renewable energy.
However, this week we also heard that Dangote is building the world's biggest oil refinery, which will process 650,000b/day. It will also be Nigeria's first oil refinery. Aliko Dangote, owner of Dangote Group, decided to up the initial design from 450,000b/day because he believes that Nigeria, as a leading producer of crude oil, should also be credited with local refining capacity. Currently, Nigeria produces crude oil, but has to buy refined products from abroad. The refinery is expected to be fully operational by 2017.
Efforts to increase renewable energy should be strongly encouraged - the benefits to the planet and its population are undeniable. However, renewable energy technology has a way to go (if ever) before it can entirely replace fossil fuel-derived energy, which makes Dangote's investment a safe bet. As renewable energy like solar and wind power is entirely reliant on nature, supplies can never be assured.
While sporadic supplies to houses and small businesses may be part of the price we eventually have to pay for a greener world, larger businesses like supermarkets and cement plants, which could lose millions (or billions) from power outages, will surely have something to say, and a lot of sway, when it comes to relying completely on renewable energy. In addition, power outages to essential services like hospitals are unthinkable when it comes to the health of our loved ones. Ultimately, the argument for relying on renewable energy may well be won by utilitarians' 'greater good' argument, but how would it feel to know that your sick child could have been saved by fossil fuel-derived energy?