Displaying items by tag: Energy Saving
US: The CalPortland Rillito cement plant in Arizona has received an energy efficiency rebate of US$71,213 from Tucson Electric Power (TEP) as part of a programme providing incentive funds for energy efficiency projects. The cement plant installed an upgrade to its clinker cooler using funding from the TEP Commercial Energy Solutions program. To date, this is the construction materials producers largest rebate in the state of Arizona.
Colombia: Cementos Argos has launched energy saving measures that could contribute close to 10% of the energy saving goals of the Colombian national government. The cement producer has joined the energy savings campaign promoted by the government by taking additional measures at its plants and offices that can help conserve this important resource.
Cementos Argos intends to deliver excess energy from its self-generation plants of about 30MW to the domestic electrical network and limit the use of its 16 cement mills during peak hours, which will represent savings of about 38MW. In addition it will maximize its use of flexitime and day work to limit the use of electrical energy at its administrative offices. With these measures the company hopes to save the equivalent of the consumption of close to 100,000 homes per day and of close to 130,000 homes during peak hours.
“We are convinced that by joining our efforts, we can multiply results. That is why, if all companies and families put their best foot forward, we can all contribute to energy saving and create habits that allow us to preserve resources that are fundamental to our planet’s sustainability,” said Jorge Mario Velásquez, CEO of Cementos Argos.
Uzbek cement plants to carry out energy-saving projects
27 January 2016Uzbekistan: Qizilqumsement and Bekabad Cement intend to conduct energy saving projects at their plants by the end of 2020, according to local press.
Bekabad Cement, in partnership with the World Bank, is upgrading its aeration system and the products transportation system at its cement silos. The upgrade will save more than 3MkW/hr of electric power per year. The plant is also installing a new cement ball mill with a capacity of 135 – 150t/hr. This is planned to reduce power consumption by 20%.
Qizilqumsement plans to reduce its gas consumption by 46.6Mm3, and power consumption by 57MkW/hr. A clinker silo will be built, the clinker plant will be upgraded and the closed circuit cement milling will be launched for mill #7.
Indian cement companies emit less CO2 than US and EU producers
19 February 2015India: Most cement plants in India consume less energy and emit less CO2 than their European and American counterparts as they use the latest technology, according to the Cement Sustainability Initiative (CSI).
An initiative of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), CSI is a 23-member organisation including nine Indian cement companies. CSI members produce 66% of the world's cement and 60% in India. "The member companies from India are more efficient. They emit less CO2 than the companies in Europe and the US. Their energy consumption is also less," said CSI's managing director Philippe Fonta.
The distinction between Indian firms from those in the US and Europe is technology. Indian companies use the latest technology since many of the cement plants are relatively new. Besides India's UltraTech Cement and Dalmia Bharat, seven global companies with operations in India like Holcim's ACC and Ambuja Cement, Lafarge, HeidelbergCement, Zuari Cement are among members of CSI. Fonta said that Indian companies could improve if they lay more emphasis on alternative fuels and energy and make use of municipal waste. The 360Mt/yr Indian cement industry meets just 0.6% of its energy needs with alternative fuels, but this is expected to go up to 5% cent by 2020.
India: Sanghi Industries Limited will invest US$40.5m over next couple of years with a focus on sustainable development, innovation and energy conservation. The company plans to invest US$24.3m to develop a 15MW waste heat recovery system (WHR) and another US$16.2m to further develop its facilities at Navlakhi Port in Gujarat State.
Sanghi Industries has signed a contract for installation of a WHR system at its cement plant in Kutch, Gujarat, whereby 15MW of power will be generated from the waste gases released. With the technology, valuable fossil fuel savings will be made, foreign exchange costs will be saved and there will be a significant reduction in the emission of pollutant gases. Sanghi will recover more than 70% of the waste heat generated from its cement plant.
For the conservation of coastal soil, the company will undertake a mangrove plantation spread over 2km2 on the Gujarat coast. The initiative will protect the ecology of the coast and improve socio-economic development.
"Our focus is on increasing efficiencies at our manufacturing facilities as well as reducing our carbon footprint by cutting down on pollutants that affect the environment," said Alok Sanghi, director of Sanghi Industries. "Also, in line with the Ministry of Shipping agenda to increase transportation through the coastal sea rout, Sanghi has set up a terminal with an investment of US$8m at Navlakhi Port. We will invest an additional US$16m to further develop the terminal at Navlakhi as the sea route reduces our transportation cost considerably."
Canada: Community leaders and St Marys Cement Inc. executives were on hand on 29 May 2014 to celebrate the company's Bowmanville plant receiving the Gold Award Certification in Energy Excellence. Certification in Energy Excellence is a programme that tests an organisation's energy management processes. Over 160 energy management criteria, based on world-class best practices, are assessed. The programme is independently moderated and validated by the UK's National Energy Foundation.
The Bowmanville plant was recognised for its energy conservation performance and its success at energy management. To date, the plant's approach to energy management has saved US$10m. In 2014 it is on target to again reduce its energy bill by US$1m. These savings are achieved though an integrated and balanced approach of smart energy buying, matching energy-intensive plant operations with off-peak rates, common sense energy conservation practices and other plant-based energy initiatives.
John Pooley, Chief Assessor for the Certification in Energy Excellence, presented the plant with the award. "The Bowmanville facility is one of the largest cement plants in North America with a rated capacity of over 1.8Mt/yr," said Pooley. "Cement plants consume significant amounts of energy, but few other industrial operations in the world have come close to achieving the same level of integration in energy savings."
Marty Fallon, CEO of St Marys Cement, Celso Martini, VP Cement Operations, and Fabio Garcia, Manager of Plant Operations, accepted the award on behalf of St Marys. "St Marys is extremely proud of the effort, ingenuity and technical expertise deployed by the men and women working here to achieve the direct savings and establish systems to keep our energy purchase prices as low as possible," said Fallon. "The energy reductions at this plant are getting more and more attention as a benchmark in sustainability criteria for the entire sector. In fact, in 2015 the plant will be the featured site visit during the 2015 IEEE-IAS/PCA Cement Industry Technical Conference."
The Bowmanville plant manager Fabio Garcia said, "I want to especially commend the energy management and conservation committee, which we call E=MC2. With representatives from finance, human resources, environment, quality control, maintenance, mining and production departments, the committee identified and acted upon over 100 separate energy efficiency initiatives. The magic of the E=MC2 approach was many of the energy savings required little capital expenditure or were done at no cost."
Since the E=MC2 committee's inception, the plant has reduced its energy usage by a total of 171,429MW and has lowered CO2 emissions by 31,886t.
Efficiency improvements in the US
13 July 2011US: A Duke University study prepared for the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has reported that the cement industry reduced its energy intensity by 13% between 1997 and 2007, averaging improvements of more than 1%/yr. These energy savings equate to a reduction of almost 1.5Mt of energy-related carbon. The study showed the gap between the best-performing cement plants and others narrowed and the performance of the industry as a whole improved.
"The decade studied by Duke was one of unprecedented growth for the cement industry, yet Portland Cement Association (PCA) members demonstrated their commitment to environmental stewardship by building sound strategies for energy management and investing in their facilities with state-of-the-art technologies that significantly improved the industry's energy-efficiency and reduced emissions," said Brian McCarthy, PCA CEO and president. "The US cement industry was among the first major industries to tackle the issue of climate change and this study illustrates that it has remained at the forefront of developing policies and improving the manufacturing process."
The study was commissioned by the EPA to measure the change in the cement industry's energy efficiency curve. The energy management approach promoted by the EPA's 'Energy Star' programme, which benchmarks plant energy performance against peers over time and certifies plants that achieve the best enviornmental performance, was an important factor in enabling the industry to improve its energy performance.
The Energy Performance Indicator (EPI) scores the energy efficiency of a single cement plant and allows the plant to compare its performance to that of the entire industry. The tool is intended to help cement plant operators identify opportunities to improve energy efficiency, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, conserve conventional energy supplies and reduce production costs.