Displaying items by tag: Energy

Ukraine: Cement producers have warned of consequences for the industry due to a 67% rise in the marginal price of electricity, according to Lyudmila Krypka, executive director of Ukrcement. Due to high tariffs, the industry is reportedly only operating at 60-70% of capacity.

Krypka said “Export for us is a matter of survival.”

She said that the increase was unjustified and wartime conditions with limited energy market competition created additional risks. Ukrainian industry receives no compensation for energy costs, unlike in the EU. Ukrcement has proposed preferential electricity transmission tariffs for energy-intensive industries and technical and economic criteria for priority enterprises.

Germany: Holcim, E.ON Energy Infrastructure Solutions and Orcan Energy have launched a large-scale waste heat recovery project at Holcim’s Dotternhausen cement plant to capture 10MW of unused heat from kiln exhaust gases. The recovered heat will supply internal processes, potential district heating networks and power generation via Orcan Energy’s eP1000 Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) system. E.ON is responsible for the planning, construction, financing operation and maintenance of the plant as part of an Energy-as-a-Service model. This is intended to present no initial investment costs for Holcim.

Holcim South Germany plant manager Dieter Schillo said “This project marks an important milestone on our path to decarbonising cement production. The smart use of industrial waste heat not only reduces our Scope 2 emissions, but also strengthens our role as a pioneer in sustainable building materials.”

Pakistan: Dewan Cement has commissioned a 6MW solar power system at its Dhabeji plant in Karachi, the company disclosed to the Pakistan Stock Exchange. The system now reportedly provides over 50% of the plant’s operational energy requirements. The company said that the investment in renewable energy would improve energy security and deliver cost savings amid rising fuel prices.

Türkiye: Medcem has completed testing of its new waste heat recovery (WHR) facility, which will recover 25% of the energy demand of the plant’s second rotary kiln line commissioned in 2024.

The 9.6MW facility uses an organic rankine cycle (ORC) system to generate electricity from a single heat source. The company says that this will lead to significant cost savings in energy expenses while also reducing CO₂ emissions.

India: JSW Group is actively seeking investment opportunities in Assam’s cement sector. Besides cement production, the group is reportedly investigating power plant opportunities in the state.

The Business Standard newspaper has reported that JSW Group Chair Sajjan Jindal noted the strategic importance of North East India as one half of a ‘dual-engine’ Indian economy.

Moldova: The Rybnitsa cement plant has closed amid a cutoff of gas supply to the Transnistrian region, leaving half of its 650 employees at home with 66% of their pay, while the rest carry out equipment repairs and cleaning, according to IPN news.

Interim director Oksana Baka said “The plant had a plan to produce about 30,000t of cement during this period. This stock would have ensured our protection on the market, but now the situation is critical because our supplies are insufficient.” Contributions to the local budget will decrease if gas supplies are not restored by February 2025.

The plant is modernising its dust filtration system and preparing for resumption once gas supplies are restored. On 1 January 2025, Gazprom stopped supplying gas to the Transnistrian region, after gas transit through Ukraine ended. The region remains under a state of emergency until 8 February 2025.

North Macedonia: Titan Usje will invest €20m over the next three years to modernise its operations, focusing on digitalisation and new technologies. Since 2019, the company has invested over €6m in digitisation and artificial intelligence solutions. The system is being rolled out across all Titan plants and is designed to maximise production efficiency, reduce energy use by over 10% and improve product quality, while cutting CO₂ emissions.

Austria: Holcim is set to significantly reduce its carbon footprint with the installation of a new clinker cooler system and a large-scale photovoltaic system at its Mannersdorf cement plant. The clinker cooler project is valued at approximately €10m, and aims to cut heat consumption and reduce CO₂ emissions by 18,000t/yr. Completion is expected in early 2025. The solar project will be fully operational by 2025, and will cover approximately 15% of the plant’s energy needs and reduce CO₂ emissions by an additional 12,700t/yr. 2.7MW of solar panels were erected at the site of the former chimney on the plant’s premises.

Plant manager Helmut Reiterer said "Sustainability requires decarbonisation, i.e. continuously reducing the CO₂ emissions from our production activities. We are placing an investment focus on energy-efficient production by modernising our machinery, but also on expanding green energy."

Kenya: Mombasa Cement will build a 20MW power plant at its Vipingo plant in Kilifi County, to help reduce energy costs. The US$19.4m project will generate 10MW of electricity using a waste heat recovery system and 10MW from solid fuels. The waste heat will be recovered from flue gases emitted during cement production. The plant has two clinker production lines. The power generated will be used onsite to support cement production.

Philippines: First Gen will supply electricity from geothermal sources to Holcim Philippines plants in Mindanao. Under the agreement, First Gen subsidiary Energy Development will provide 22% of the energy needs for Holcim's manufacturing facilities in Bunawan, Davao City, and Lugait, Misamis Oriental. This partnership is enabled by the Mindanao introduction of the retail competition and open access programme, allowing significant power consumers to select their electricity suppliers. Earlier in August 2024, Holcim announced an electricity supply agreement with Alsons Power to supply 80% of the energy needs for the two facilities.

First Gen president and chief operating officer Francis Giles Puno said "We are pleased to partner with Holcim Philippines to grow viably while decarbonising. It's not an easy journey to decarbonise and provide for a regenerative future. This requires collaboration not just through supplying power, but also through solutions that maximise and optimise electricity requirements and working to find a pathway towards net zero."