Cement body for green status to waste heat recovery units

The Cement Manufacturers Association today said the government should accord renewable energy status to waste heat recovery (WHR) units deployed for cogeneration of power at the cement plants.

In his speech at the inaugural session of 10th Green Cementech here, NA Viswanathan, secretary general of the association, said the green status would also help mini to small cement plants towards setting up such systems.

Quoting market studies, G Jayaraman, executive president of Birla Corporation Ltd and chairman of the conference, said there existed a potential of 500-600-Mw power generation through WHR units. He added WHR projects were picking up and the installed capacity in India was expected to reach over 200-Mw this year.

Other international speakers at the meet, including HJ Nielsen, managing director of Thailand-based LV Technology Public Company Ltd, and Philippe Fonta of Cement Sustainability Initiative lauded the progress of the Indian cement industry from a capacity of 27 million tonnes (mt) two decades ago to around 350 mt now. They expect cement production capacity to double to 700 mt by 2035.