Global Cement speaks with Marmara Cement’s Yiğit Gündoğdu about Turkey’s newest cement plant.
Global Cement (GC): Please could you outline the development of Marmara Cement?
Yiğit Gündoğdu (YG): Marmara Cement was founded by Üstyapi, a Turkish road builder and construction contractor, in 2018. It was built, in part, to bring cement production in house for Üstyapi’s own projects, but it also supplies other ready-mix contractors and exports cement and clinker to destinations around the world. Before Marmara Cement, Üstyapi had previously founded, built, commissioned and subsequently sold another cement plant, Kavçim, between 2012 and 2016.
Permission to build the Marmara Cement Factory, which is located in the north of Turkey close to the Black Sea, was granted by the authorities in 2018. Construction began later that year, with Üstyapi undertaking all of the construction work. Our approach was to bring together the best available European cement production equipment to engineer a highly-efficient cement plant.
Construction of the plant took place in 2019 and 2020, although the Covid-19 pandemic slowed construction somewhat in 2020. In early 2021, construction was completed and we were able to fire up the kiln. The first clinker was produced on 1 April 2021.
GC: What production equipment does the plant use?
YG: Our captive quarry has over 250Mt of high-quality limestone reserves. It is very close to the plant itself. There, the limestone is crushed using a Üstyapi-built 1300t/hr crusher prior to storage in a 50,000t premix storage dome that is equipped with a Bedeschi stacker-reclaimer. The limestone is blended with additives before storage in a 25,000t silo built by Claudius Peters. From there, it is fed to a vertical raw mill supplied by Gebr. Pfeiffer. It is designed for 450t/hr but we have already been able to increase this to 530t/hr without issues. The same company also supplied the plant’s 55t/hr vertical coal mill.
The raw meal is fed to our KHD-supplied pyro-processing line. It is a Pyroclon design with a six cyclone preheater system and Low-NOx burner. The efficiency of this arrangement is second to none, with energy consumption of below 700kCal/kg of clinker. This provides excellent efficiency when the plant is making 6000t/day (1.9Mt/yr) of clinker. The plant has a KHD clinker cooler and a 130,000t clinker silo from Claudius Peters.
The plant uses two identical ball mills from Christian Pfeiffer for clinker grinding. These work with roller presses from TAKRAF to achieve very high grinding efficiency. Each ball mill / roller press system has a capacity to grind 220t/hr of clinker, a total of 440t/hr. This capacity is far higher than we need. However, we use them in parallel during off-peak electrical periods. Electricity prices are a big issue for a lot of Turkish industries at the moment.
After the cement grinding unit, there is a four-chamber Claudius Peters silo for different cement products that has a capacity of 30,000t. We dispatch cement by bulk tanker, both within Turkey and to various export markets. We can also fill Big Bags using a Üstyapi-designed filling system and have a packing plant from Ceylan Turkey and sling bag. We will shortly commission a palletising line installed by Saray Kimya, a local robotics firm.
I should also mention that all of the elevators and dosing systems are from quality European suppliers, AUMUND and FLSmidth Pfister, respectively.
GC: What types of cement are made?
YG: The plant has made four types of cement so far. CEM I 42.5 R represents the bulk of production, I would say around 90%. We also produce CEM I 52.5 N, CEM II 42.5 A/L R and CEM II 32.5 B/L R, the latter two of which contain limestone. We have the capability to produce other types, should the market request these.
GC: You mentioned a coal mill from Gebr. Pfeiffer. Is this the only type of fuel used?
YG: Coal is the main fuel used by the plant. At present we source this from nearby Zonguldak, around 100km away. This coal has a similar calorific value to Russian steam coal, which we used to buy when it was less expensive. However, the price is extremely high at the moment. We also use some petcoke, often mixed with the Turkish coal, but sometimes we use 100% petcoke, depending on price and availability.
GC: Do you plan to use alternative fuels at the plant in the future?
YG: Yes, this is a natural next step for our plant and one we are keen to embark upon. We can’t rely on fossil fuels in the longer term as they are unsustainable and they will cost even more in the future. While we don’t know for sure when changes will come, it is no secret that Turkey will see some form of CO2 tax or trading scheme in the next few years. With costs rising all around us, we don’t want to leave ourselves exposed. Even if there is no Turkish CO2 scheme, there may be knock-on effects from the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). This seeks to level the playing field for EU-based producers by introducing CO2 emissions costs on imports to the bloc.
In terms of the implementation of alternative fuels here, the plant operates in the most densely-populated areas of Turkey. This ensures that there is a lot of available waste. First, we will install dosing systems and feeding systems for the preheater. The high residence time of the preheater makes it very forgiving. We will make sure that the feeding systems will be able to handle tyres, secondary recovered fuel, refuse-derived fuels, construction and demolition waste and more besides.
Once the dosing systems are established and we are firing the plant with locally-produced alternative fuels, we will expand operations to in-house fuel preparation and fuel optimisation.
GC: Do you have a timeline for the alternative fuels projects?
YG: We anticipate that we will start to feed alternative fuels before the end of the first half of 2022, with a target to substitute 20 - 30% of fossil fuels with alternatives by the end of that year. We have all the permissions in place, so there should be no trouble from that side.
GC: What emissions abatement systems does the plant use?
YG: Marmara Cement is a very modern cement production facility and it comfortably exceeds Turkish emissions standards. For example, our dust emissions are less than 10mg/Nm3, when the limit is 30mg/Nm3. To reach this low level, there are more than 60 bag filters across the plant. In addition, Üstyapi designed all of the conveyors with the minimum possible drop height. This removes opportunities for dust to become airborne.
Dust emissions, as well as NOx, SO2, total organic carbon, CO, heavy metals, everything you can imagine, are continuously monitored with equipment from SICK. This allows the plant management team, local stakeholders and government officials to inspect the plant’s emissions at any time.
GC: Are there any other projects in the pipeline, in addition to alternative fuels?
YG: We are currently working on the installation of a 9MW waste heat recovery system for the preheater. This will be based on an Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC). This is important in an increasingly water-scarce country. The WHR system will enable us to save around 35 - 40% of our total electrical consumption. Additionally, we currently consume water to cool the stack. This will no longer be required when we install the WHR system, so it represents a very ‘green’ installation. It saves on water consumption and decreases CO2 emissions.
In addition to this, we will shortly start to build a dedicated port facility at Alaplı, around 30km to the north of the plant on the Black Sea coast. This will have 20,000m2 of storage space, with two berths (200m x 30m) of 14m draught for vessels of up to 60,000t dwt. There will be clinker storage areas, bulk cement silos, coal storage facilities and areas for bagged cement. It will be an import/export hub, with some domestic sales along the Black Sea coast.
Finally, as a business, we are developing a ready-mix concrete network across Istanbul and the wider Marmara region. We want the public to get to know Marmara Cement as a reliable name and develop the brand in the local market.
GC: Regarding the port project, does the plant already export cement?
YG: We have exported about 50% of the cement and clinker we have made to date, around 250,000t in total. We have exported to diverse locations like Ireland, Germany, Ghana and Colombia, as well as some local neighbours like Romania and Ukraine. So far, our exports have taken place at third-party facilities, but the new port facility will enable us to be in control of our export operations to a much greater extent.
The other 50% of our cement and clinker has remained in Turkey to serve the local market via a fleet of 40 Marmara Cement trucks. We also supply from the plant to a selection of sub-contractors. In the future, we see the local/export split remaining at around 50:50.
GC: What opportunities do you see for Marmara Cement over the next 1 - 2 years?
YG: As a family company, one of our major advantages is that we can adapt to changes in the market rapidly, without having lengthy discussions or shareholder considerations. We see opportunities to supply several export markets, particularly the EU, where clinker capacity is under threat. However, we will also remain grounded in Turkey, so that we don’t become too reliant on either market.
In the future our projects, for example alternative fuels and WHR system, will enhance both the sustainability and competitiveness of our cement and concrete relative to other players in the market. We will be greener and cheaper than most, which will stand us in good stead.
GC: What major threats are out there for Marmara Cement over the same time period?
YG: A major issue is continued high fuel and electricity prices. These have risen significantly in 2021 and show no signs of reducing. We hope that they don’t rise much further, hence our efforts to rapidly reduce our reliance on traditional fuels and electricity sources.
Freight rates have also quadrupled since the start of 2021. If that trend continues, our ability to export cement economically, as a nation, is at risk. This is not the market that we expected to encounter when we began the Marmara Cement journey in 2018. At the same time, many export markets, for example, need cement. A lot of that is made in Turkey. We hope that, whatever the market brings, Turkey will continue to be a reliable supplier to such markets.
GC: Do you think that the Turkish cement market is ripe for consolidation?
YG: I think that the market in five years’ time will not have the same make-up as it does at the moment. There is a chance that bigger players will acquire smaller ones that will struggle over the coming years. Marmara Cement will still be here though, of that I am sure. We are financed using internal funds and do not have to answer to financial backers, unlike some other smaller cement producers in the market. This makes me hopeful that, whatever the market throws at us, we are well positioned. Remember, even though the Turkish economy is weak at the moment, its fundamentals are strong, with a young and growing population that will demand significant quantities of cement and concrete, especially in the regions surrounding Istanbul. After the crisis comes the opportunity!
GC: Thank you for your time today Yiğit.
YG: You are very welcome indeed - It was great to speak with Global Cement!