Displaying items by tag: Government

Philippines: The Central Office of the Environment Management Bureau (EMB) has supported the import of alternative fuels by Holcim Philippines. The office sent a letter to John Simon the Port Collector of the Bureau of Customs, stating that it had no objection to the importation and use of processed engineered fuel (PEF) at the Mindanao Container Terminal (MCT) in Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental, according to the Philippines News Agency. Simon had sought clarity from the EMB over the consignment. The PEF is intended for use at Holcim Philippines’ cement pants at Davao and Lugait.

Belgium: Cembureau, the European cement association, has called on European Union (EU) member states to promote the use of waste as a fuel for cement production. It made the call during an event that the association hosted during EU Green Week. The focus of EU Green Week in 2019 is on the proper implementation and impact of EU environmental laws.

“There is no technological limitation for the cement sector to reach 60% co-processing rate in 2030 and it could process 15.7Mt of waste. We believe that the EU and member states can help bring this about by introducing legislation to promote co-processing and recognising its place in a revised waste hierarchy within national waste framework laws,” said Cembureau’s chief executive Koen Coppenholle. At present the European cement industry has an average alternative fuels substitution rate of 44%.

Uzbekistan: The government is preparing to increase the use of alternative fuels in the cement and lime industry. A draft decree intends shift local industry to meet global trends in energy consumption and away from natural has consumption, according to the Trend News Agency. The government intends to encourage the use of coal, wood briquettes and pallets, biogas and other fuels.

The Ministry of Energy, together with the Academy of Sciences and research institutes, is planning to develop energy efficiency levels for industrial gas boilers. Local gas suppliers Uzneftegazinspektsiya, Uzenergoinspektsiya and Uztransgaz will then stop supplying natural gas to non-compliant industrial users from the beginning of 2020.

UAE: Cement plants in Ras Al Khaimah are using camel dung as alternative fuel. Saif Al Ghais, director of the Environment Protection and Development Authority in Ras Al Khaimah, said that cement plants in the emirate are co-processing a mixture of camel waste, wood waste and refuse-derived fuel, according to the Khaleej Times newspaper. The emirate is also considering using cooking oil in its cement plants. The initiative is part of the country’s national recycling and sustainability strategy.

Egypt: South Korea’s JST has signed a deal with the government to build waste recycling plants to produce alternative fuels for cement plants. The signing ceremony was witnessed by Mohammed al-Assar, the Minister of State for Military Production, according to the Egyptian Independent. The ministry said in a statement that the deal is part of its strategy of working with international companies to transfer modern technologies to Egypt.

Canada: The Alberta Climate Leadership Plan has allocated US$7.5m for the Lower Carbon Fuels Project at Lafarge Canada’s Exshaw cement plant. The funding is part of a total of over US$50m that will be distributed to 11 projects in the Province. Projects were selected and funded through Emissions Reduction Alberta (ERA), an organisation that accelerates the development and demonstration of emissions-reducing technologies.

“This multi-partner, multi-site research project will help Lafarge Canada better understand the environmental benefits of introducing lower-carbon fuels at the Exshaw Cement Plant. The Exshaw low-carbon fuels project will go a long way in helping us reach our ambitious corporate goal to produce 40% less net CO₂/t of cement by 2030. This support from ERA helps us move this project forward. We hope that any positive results or lessons learned will encourage others in our industry to do the same, giving this investment a greater, far-reaching impact,” said Kate Strachan, plant manager at the Lafarge Exshaw Cement Plant.

The project at Exshaw involves studying the use co-processing alternative fuels to replace the use of natural gas. Technologies for fuel handling, processing, and injection will be installed at the site to replace 50% of its natural gas use. The implementation at Exshaw will be supported by development of a waste and fuel processing facility in Calgary. Eight fuel types will be examined including construction renovation and demolition waste, non-recyclable plastic, carpet and textiles, shingles, treated wood products, wood products, rubber and tire fluff.

Spain: Cementos Alfa, part of Cementos Portland Valderrivas Group, has applied to its local environmental government body to increase its biomass co-processing rate. At present the cement plant in Cantabria is allowed to use up to 150t/day, according to the El Diario Montañés newspaper. The unit also spent Euro9m on energy savings upgrades to the main burner in 2018.

The plant produced around 0.5Mt/yr of cement in 2018 with a production capacity of 1.1Mt/yr. Production is expected to rise to 0.6Mt/yr in 2019.

India: Local government bodies in Chennai in Tamil Nadu have complained of the cost of sending plastics waste to cement plants. Five municipalities are spending of US$40,000/month on transport costs, according to the New Indian Express. Since 2017, 54 local government bodies have sent waste to cement plants for co-processing. Of these, 49 local bodies send it to UltraTech Cement’s plant at Ariyalur. However, the plant only pays transport costs for the waste sourced within a 100km radius. The state is looking into supplying plastics waste to nearer buyers.

Spain: Cemex has signed a Euro117m deal with the local government to convert the land used by the Gádor cement plant in Almeria for use by new projects. These will include projects in solar and wind power generation, waste fuel production from plastics and biomass and a new concrete batching plant, according to Teleprensa. The initiative is intended to create around 400 jobs.

The cement producer has also signed a similar agreement for its Lloseta in Baleares. The company announced in mid-October 2018 that it was planning to close the two plants due to reduced demand for cement and mounting European CO₂ emissions regulations.

US: LafargeHolcim’s Ravena cement plant in New York is considering burning tyres as an alternative fuel. Environmental Director Kevin G Bretz told Coeymans town officials that the cement producer has ‘developed relationships’ and held ‘preliminary discussions’ with potential tyre suppliers, according to the Times Union newspaper. The cement producer was hoping to use an approval by the state Department of Environmental Conservation granted in 2006 that gave permission for it to burn up to 4.8 million tyres annually at the plant. However, this Beneficial Use Determination (BUD) expired in mid-2018.