Ireland: Irish Cement has until the end of March 2017 to submit further information to the local government about its plans to upgrade its cement plant in Limerick to allow it to co-process alternative fuels. The company is waiting for planning permission for a 10-year licence to use solid recovered waste and tyres in cement production, according to the Limerick Leader newspaper. However, the application has been delayed twice following opposition by local residents.

Japan: Aso Cement aims to raise its alternative fuels substitution rate to 50% by 2020 from its current rate of around 30%, according to comments made by its Tagawa plant manager Kenji Kawauchi to Jiji Press. The cement producer operates a unit capable of disposing of 160t/day of waste plastic at its Tagawa plant in Fukuoka Prefecture.

India: The Karnataka State Pollution Control Board has arranged a deal with the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palik (BBMP), an administrative city council body, to remove excess refuse derived fuel (RDF) in Bangalore. The agreement has arranged to transport 1.3Mt of RDF that has accumulated at six recycling plants in the city for a cost of just under US$0.5m, according to the Hindu newspaper.

High transport costs to move the PDF to cement plants in the north of Karnataka despite giving the RDF to the plants for free have been blamed for the excess of RDF in Bangalore in the south of the state. As an interim measure BBMP officials have asked cement plants to use Corporate Social Responsibility funds to cover the costs of transporting the RDF while it arranges policy on the matter. The government body may seek to ask the state government to subsidise transport costs for the RDF.

Slovenia: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has awarded Salonit Anhovo (Salonit) a Euro15m loan to be used for energy and resource efficiency improvements and to restructure the company’s balance sheet. The building materials producer has a substitution rate of 64% for alternative fuels at its Anhovo cement plant. The EBRD loan will be invested to increase this ratio further to improve the company’s profitability and reduce CO₂ emissions. A precondition for increasing the ratio of alternative fuels is the installation of state-of-the-art equipment. The investment will also have a beneficial effect on operational costs, which are expected to decline thanks to the adjusted fuel ratios.