Displaying items by tag: Fuel

Nigeria: Alhaji Abdulsamad Rabiu, the chairman of the Cement Company of Northern Nigeria (CCNN), has warned that the price of cement may rise if the Naira continues to devalue. He made the comments at the company’s Annual General Meeting according to the Nation newspaper. Imported inputs such as fuel, machinery, spare parts and gypsum would all be affected by local currency depreciation. The cement producer was forced to shut down its Sokoto cement plant for intermittent periods in late 2015 due to poor supplies of low pour fuel oil (LFPO) from the Kaduna refinery.

The subsidiary of BUA Group reported that its turnover fell by 14% year-on-year to US$41.4m in 2015 from US$48m in 2014. Its profit after tax fell by 37% to US$3.81m from US$6.09m.

Paraguay: Industria Nacional del Cemento (INC) has shut down its clinker kiln for 30 days to start work on a fuel upgrade project. The US$45m project is intended to allow the kiln to use other fuels as well as the fuel oil it currently uses. A further 90-day stoppage period has been scheduled for mid-2016. The project is expected to be complete by the end of the year.

INC’s president Jorge Mendez has reassured the public that the cement supply from his plant will not drop during the maintenance period. INC will continue delivering between 50,000 - 55,000 bags/day. The firm has 86,500t of clinker in stock. In addition the government will also import 200,000t of cement to maintain levels. INC is the country’s sole integrated cement plant.

Nepal: The Hetauda Cement plant has started producing cement again following the lifting of an unofficial fuel blockade by India. The plant was shut after it could not import coal from India in the autumn of 2016. Hetauda resumed production on 11 February 2016, according to the Katmandu Post. Factory officials say the plant lost US$0.9m during the enforced closure.

Nepal: Cement producers have suggested that consumers wait for cement prices to fall before they build new homes. Bishnu Prasd Neupane, managing director of Jagadamba Cement, made the comment at a forum organised and reported upon by Nepal Republic Media. He said that end users could benefit from the fall in the international price of crude oil. A drop in fuel prices is expected to cut transport and production costs. Overall, the price of construction materials could drop by 20%.

Tara Prasad Pokharel, general secretary of Cement Manufacturer's Association Nepal (CMAN), asked customers not to pay more than a transportation cost of more than US$1.4/bag or more than 20% dealer costs on top of factory prices. The retail price of cement has increased by more than 50% due to high transportation costs caused by fuels shortages.

"The price of diesel is expected to come down to US$0.55/litre from US$0.69/litre. It will obviously lower our cost of production," said Pashupati Murarka, promoter of Arghakhanchi Cement and also the president of Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI). Use of diesel-run generators increases the price of cement by around US$0.74/bag at current oil prices. Use of the country's national grid increases is also expected to cut the cost of production significantly.

Germany: Joule, a producer of liquid fuels from recycled CO₂, and HeidelbergCement have announced a partnership to explore the application of Joule's technology to mitigate carbon emissions in cement manufacturing. A successful partnership between Joule and HeidelbergCement could result in the co-location of Joule's Helioculture Technology at one or more HeidelbergCement sites around the world.

Since 1990, HeidelbergCement has worked to decrease its carbon emissions, initiating various programmes across the organisation that have reduced emissions by 23%. HeidelbergCement said that its partnership with Joule represents another example of its sustained dedication to leveraging innovative technologies and programmes for climate protection. As part of the agreement, emissions from various HeidelbergCement plants could provide Joule with the waste CO₂ required to feed its advanced Helioculture platform that effectively recycles CO₂ back into fuel.

"We've been focused on lowering carbon emissions for more than two decades and we are excited to take further steps to lower our CO₂ emissions by working with a dedicated organisation with state-of-the-art technology that is committed to protecting the climate," said Jan Theulen, Director of Alternative Resources at HeidelbergCement. "Joule's process, which effectively recycles waste CO₂ into liquid fuels, is a perfect match for HeidelbergCement and our core values and we look forward to starting the journey towards a long-term, mutually beneficial relationship."

Joule's Helioculture process directly and continuously converts sunlight and waste CO₂ into infrastructure-ready fuels, including ethanol and alkanes that serve as highly blendable feedstock for diesel and jet fuel products. Only requiring abundantly available inputs, including sunlight, brackish or sea water and waste CO₂, the process is well suited for global deployment. For organisations like HeidelbergCement, Joule turns a carbon challenge into a carbon solution by capturing and recycling waste CO₂.

"Carbon emissions are a challenge faced by many industries that are of critical importance to everyday life, such as cement," said Brian Baynes, CEO of Joule. "We are pleased to have the opportunity to partner with HeidelbergCement in an attempt to develop a modern, ultra-low carbon cement manufacturing process."

Oman: Raysut Cement Company has signed an agreement with Arabian Industries for the installation of a gas pressure reduction station (GPRS) at its Raysut plant. Oman Gas Company has been appointed as the Project Management Consultant. Upon completion of the GPRS, cement production will be boosted by 120,000-130,000t/yr. Total investment in the project is estimated at US$5.45m.

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.

UK: SITA UK has completed the construction of its Solid Recovered Fuel (SRF) manufacturing plant at Malpass Farm in Rugby, Warwickshire. The plant will undergo a series of commissioning tests over the next few months before starting full-scale production of Climafuel SRF. This will be used to power the kiln at the adjacent Cemex UK Rugby cement plant.

The residual waste material arriving at the site will primarily be collected from commercial and industrial businesses across the region that would otherwise go to landfill. Once received on site any metals, plastics and paper will be extracted for recycling. Similarly, materials with a high chlorine content, which could damage the kiln, will also be extracted. Any residual waste material that is removed from the production process will be processed into refuse derived fuel (RDF) for use in waste-to-energy applications.

To produce the SRF, the remaining material is sifted, shredded and blended while being continuously analysed using infrared technology. This allows the plant operators to ensure that the fuel, which has a confetti-like consistency after processing, has the precise chemical composition and calorific value required by Cemex UK.

SITA UK's Head of Alternative Fuels, Andy Hill, said, "The residual waste material that will be delivered to this facility would have gone to landfill but, instead, we are going to take out anything that can be recycled and then turn what's left into a replacement fuel."

"We have been producing this fuel very successfully at our sister plant at Landor Street in Birmingham for the past couple of years, but this new facility implements the latest technology and will substantially increase our production capacity," continued Hill. "Between the two plants, we'll be producing around 250,000t/yr of Climafuel."

SITA UK is currently also investing in new SRF manufacturing facilities at the Port of Tilbury in Essex, which are currently under construction. SITA UK currently supplies SRF to CEMEX UK and to CEMEX Latvia.

Mexico: Holcim will start a programme to use biomass as fuel in August 2014 at its Orizaba cement plant. Its subsidiary Ecoltec has installed a system to utilise biomass, using residual heat from the cement furnaces. The company will use coffee bagasse and biomass from the paper and beer industries, according to spokesman Gustavo Gastelum. Apart from limiting fossil fuel consumption, the project will also reduce methane gas emissions from organic waste. Since 1990 Holcim Mexico has cut its net carbon dioxide emissions by 19%.

Egypt: Omar A Mohanna, Chairman of Suez Cement, has announced that the company intends to alter its energy mix to use 20% of its energy from waste recycling and 80% from coal during 2014. He added that the Ministry of Environmental affairs has not announced its position on the use of coal, according to AlAhram News. Previous energy supply shortages have reduced production at Suez Cement to 50%.

In related news, the CEO of the Misr Beni Suef Cement Company revealed that his company has received an official letter from the Egyptian government informing the company that the natural gas supply to their facilities will be completely cut in May 2014. The letter added that the government will supply enough Mazut to the company to operate one production line.