Philippines: Republic Cement has signed a deal with ACS Manufacturing to receive sorted plastic waste. Republic Cement’s waste management subsidiary Ecoloop will shred the waste to produce alternative fuel (AF) for use in the company’s cement production.

The Manila Bulletin newspaper has reported that Ecoloop managing director Angela Edralin-Valencia said “Republic Cement remains committed to addressing the pervasive plastic pollution problem in the country by collaborating with various organisations and local government units for proper waste disposal.”

Mexico: Cemex Mexico’s Puebla cement plant directly prevented 55,300t-worth of CO₂ emissions through alternative fuel (AF) substitution during the first eight months of 2023. RSS News has reported the facility recorded the highest alternative fuel (AF) substitution rate anywhere in Latin America. When factoring in its removal of landfill-associated CO₂ emissions, this gives the Puebla plant’s cement a carbon footprint of 400kg/t. Cemex is committed to reducing its specific emissions to 430kg/t of cement globally by 2030.

Nigeria: Dangote Cement plans to raise its alternative fuel (AF) substitution rate across its Nigerian operations to 25%. The Punch newspaper has reported that the producer consumed 34,800t of AF during the first half of 2023.

Obajana cement plant head of sustainability Eseosa Ighile said “We are working towards installing AF feeding systems in all our operation lines by 2024.”

India: Heidelberg Materials subsidiary Zuari Cement has commissioned a 20t/hr alternative fuel (AF) production line at its 7.1Mt/yr Yerraguntla cement plant. The line includes an UNTHA XR3000C shredder. This will support continuous operations and turn waste to AF in a single step, according to Zuari Cement.

HeidelbergCement India technical director Vimal Jain said “We are passionate about driving environmental progress throughout our business, and the use of AF is one way to do that. But this waste-to-energy feedstock comes at a cost, which is why co-processing makes so much sense. When designing this plant, we needed to ensure versatility to allow for changing market conditions, and an investment in technology that makes commercial sense and is built to last.”