Displaying items by tag: Cemex UK

UK: Cemex has announced a Euro21m investment in an upgrade to its Rugby cement plant. The planned upgrade incorporates green hydrogen into the plant’s cement production process. The company says that the upgrade will enable it to shift to 100% alternative fuel (AF) substitution from fossil fuel use. It said the move is a step towards carbon neutrality in line with its Future in Action programme. The upgrade is expected to be fully operational in June 2021.

Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia regional president Sergio Menendez said, “We believe that this very significant investment in this upgraded facility supports Cemex’s position to minimise the use of fossil fuels for both environmental and economic reasons. It will enable the Rugby plant to consistently operate with up to 100% AF, which will contribute to our climate action targets.”

UK: Fairport Engineering is working on an alternative fuels storage and feed system for Cemex’s Rugby cement plant. This project underwent feasibility studies in 2018 and 2019. It is now seeking planning permission and final capital sanction. Once obtained the project execution is likely to take place during a future scheduled kiln shutdown period.

Fairport Engineering has worked on various projects at the Rugby plant since 1998. At this time it supported the installation of a new Polysius kiln with the supply of an associated combined raw materials store. Later it worked on the design and management of a new filter installation in 2006 to support tighter emissions regulations associated with alternative fuels such as a tyre chip and refuse-derived fuel (RDF).

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.