Displaying items by tag: Germany
Six dormant cement plants reportedly received Euro88m in European Union emissions allowances
05 September 2023Europe: Six cement plants were reportedly issued around Euro88m in free European Union emissions allowances (EUA) from 2019 to 2022 despite the clinker kilns at the units being idle or running at low levels. Research by the Oil Price Information Service (OPIS) has revealed that plants operated by Buzzi, Cementos Portland Valderrivas (CPV), Cemex, Holcim and Votorantim Cimentos all benefited from the scheme despite only emitting 36,370t of CO2. The companies would then have been able to use the subsidy to cover emissions costs at other plants or sell the permits. OPIS identified five plants in Spain and one in Germany.
Germany: Menzel Elektromotoren has completed internal construction of its upcoming Hennigsdorf motor plant and will now commence relocation of equipment from its existing Berlin facility. Commissioning is scheduled for early 2024. The 24,000m2 Hennigsdorf site will also double as company headquarters.
Menzel Elektromotoren assured customers that “The production and shipping of industrial motors in the high output range will continue without interruption.”
Germany: Heidelberg Materials' consolidated sales rose by 5.3% year-on-year to Euro10.5bn in the first half of 2022. The producer noted a continuing 'downward trend' in its cement sales volumes in the second quarter of the year. The group recorded a net profit of Euro783m, up by 31% year-on-year from Euro597m.
Chair Dominik von Achten said “We have closed the first half of 2023 with a good result. Even in a weaker market environment, with significant declines in sales volumes in some cases, we performed quite well. We remain confident about the second half of the year, and are once again upgrading our outlook for 2023 significantly." He continued "In the first half of 2023, we achieved a further reduction in our specific net CO₂ emissions through numerous measures. With the large number of our carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) projects, we are aiming at the full decarbonisation of our products. Just recently, one of our pioneering carbon capture and storage projects in Germany was approved to receive funding from the EU Innovation Fund. The continuous reduction of our carbon footprint and strengthening the circular economy are our most powerful levers to offer our customers climate-friendly products on a large scale."
Chief financial officer René Aldach said that the company will demonstrate its financial strength with a third tranche of its on-going share buyback programme, commencing on 28 July 2023.
Germany: Schmersal Group has appointed Jörg Kraus as its Sales Manager for Germany. He will be responsible for areas including continued development and implementation of the group’s sales strategy and sales process optimisation. He will lead a sales team and will be responsible for sales representatives and external service providers.
Kraus holds experience in the sale of technical components and capital goods in complex industries, such as mechanical and plant engineering, metals, technical gases and surface technology. He has also established and managed local sales and service organisations in Germany, Switzerland and Poland, as well as the development of new business areas. He has worked for subsidiaries of Alberts Surface since 2019. Prior to this he was employed by Linde Group for over 20 years.
Holcim Deutschland secures government funding for Höver cement plant carbon capture project
25 July 2023Germany: The Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action has approved funding for Holcim Deutschland's Höver cement plant carbon capture project. The test phase of the project is scheduled to commence in early 2024. Holcim Deutschland, together with project partners Cool Planet Technologies and Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, carried out preliminary testing in 2022. They reported 'positive' results in May 2022.
Plant manager Stephan Hinrichs said "The funding commitment from the federal government is great news for Holcim and our partners. We are doing real pioneering work for the entire cement industry, and look forward to the next step on our way to becoming a climate-neutral company."
Germany: Dyckerhoff has launched Dyckerhoff Weiss Blue Star, a pozzolanic white cement CEM IV/A (P) 42.5 R product. It was approved by the German cement association, the VDZ, in mid-June 2023 and is now being manufactured at the Amöneburg plant. The lower CO2 credentials of the new product have been promoted as it releases around 15% less CO2 compared to CEM I cements. It is also notable for being a blended white cement.
Germany: The EU Innovation Fund has granted funding to the GeZero carbon capture project at Heidelberg Materials' Geseke cement plant in North Rhine-Westphalia. The project consists of a 700,000t/yr carbon capture system and an oxyfuel kiln upgrade. A captive solar power plant will provide energy for the new systems. CO2 storage partner Wintershall Dea will receive purified liquefied CO2 from the capture system via its Wilhelmshaven distribution hub for storage under the North Sea.
Heidelberg Materials Germany general manager Christian Knell said “This project sets an important milestone for the cement industry and for effective carbon management in Germany. We are now counting on the tailwind of Germany’s future Carbon Management Strategy and the regulatory framework to come.”
CEO Dominik von Achten added “With GeZero, we will once again show how Heidelberg Materials’ pioneering spirit is paving the way for the decarbonisation of our industry. We will be the first to realise a full CCS chain for the capture, transport and permanent storage of all CO₂ emissions from an inland location in Germany. I appreciate the support of the EU Innovation Fund, which expresses both an important recognition and the required backing from the political side.”
Portugal: Cimpor Portugal has signed a contract with Germany-based KHD Humboldt Wedag (KHD) for an upgrade to production line 7 at its Alhandra cement plant. The project is intended to increase the production capacity at the plant to 3600t/day from 3000t/day and increase the line’s alternative fuels thermal substitution rate to over 80%. It will also be the first installation of KHD’s Pyrorotor alternative fuel combustion reactor in the country.
The scope of the engineering and supply contract comprises:
- New HKSK 224/335 preheater ID fan
- New downcomer duct
- New preheater with 8064/5-type HEM cyclones
- Pyroclon R calciner with Pyrotop mixing chamber. The Pyroclon R will utilize fine refuse-derived fuel (RDF) and natural gas
- 4m x 10m Pyrorotor alternative fuel combustion reactor
- Pyrobox coal firing system for process start-up and operation balancing
- Shortening of the existing kiln and installation of new kiln inlet chamber with bypass extraction
- New kiln drive station 2 (the existing girth gear and two pinions will be reused)
- New kiln hood and take-off of tertiary air from the cooler roof
- New main kiln burner designed to use more than 50% alternative fuels (but will also be capable of burning natural gas, as well as liquid fossil and alternative fuels)
- New Pyrofloor PFC²829AW cooler with a Pyrocrusher PRC 420-3ES clinker crusher.
KHD will also be supplying its KHD ProMax software product as part of the project.
Matthias Mersmann, chief technology officer at KHD, said “The decision by Cimpor Portugal to opt for KHD pyroprocessing equipment - and especially the Pyrorotor - underlines the leading market position of KHD, as well as the outstanding capability of KHD’s unique alternative fuel-processing solution.”
Project execution will be led by KHD Germany, with support from Humboldt Wedag India and the Turkish branch office of Humboldt Wedag. Commissioning of the upgraded production line is scheduled for 2025.
France: Heidelberg Materials has announced plans for its CIRCO₂BETON concrete recycling project. It intends to build an industrial-scale selective separation unit at its Achères quarry near Paris. Here it will recycle demolished concrete by crushing it and separating it into its components: sand, aggregates, and recycled concrete paste (RCP). The recycled sand and aggregates will be reincorporated into new concrete.
The RCP will be transported to the Ranville cement plant in the Normandy region. There, a reactor for enforced carbonation will be installed to carbonate the RCP by exposing it to CO₂-containing exhaust gases from the kiln. The carbonated RCP acts as a carbon sink and will replace clinker in new low-carbon cement types. The project has the potential to reduce the CO₂ emissions of the Ranville cement plant by 20%.
CIRCO₂BETON is supported by the ‘Investment for the Future’ Program coordinated by the Ecological Transition Agency (ADEME). In addition, the Île-de-France region supports the selective separation plant at Achères through its zero-waste and circular economy plan. Subject to the funding, construction of both industrial pilots is scheduled to start in 2024 with production of RCP starting in 2025. The carbonation reactor is planned to be operational by 2026.
Nicola Kimm, the chief sustainability officer at Heidelberg Materials, said ”We are investing in a pioneering large-scale project based on innovative process technologies. Selective separation and CO₂ mineralisation are important levers to reduce the carbon footprint of our products. By closing the materials loop, we prove that concrete has the potential to be the most sustainable building product over its entire life cycle from production to recycling.”
Read more about RCP in the Decemeber 2022 issue of Global Cement Magazine
Germany: Lubrication supplier Fuchs has embarked on a global marketing campaign to grow its brand awareness. The ‘Moving Your World’ initiative is using out-of-home advertising at 12 international airports in five continents to increase visibility for the company. Earlier in the year the company changed its name from Fuchs Petrolub to Fuchs as part of the same process. The company is also targeting new products and services at electric vehicles, digitalisation and sustainability as parts of its Fuchs2025 future business strategy.
Tina Vogel, Vice President Corporate Marketing and Communications at Fuchs, commented "We're on the road to establishing a strong global brand. On this journey, we're placing great emphasis on establishing long-term partnerships and a brand that also reflects the trust people are placing in us. The emotional statement Moving Your World also describes our purpose and helps us stand out from the crowd, highlighting what we stand for and why we do what we do: keeping the world of our customers moving and advancing it ever forward." Fuchs worked with Hamburg-based strategy and technology consultancy Clue One on the campaign.