The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) has suggested the Andhra Pradesh State Energy Conservation Mission (AP-SECM) to promote the use of cement-mixed Limestone Calcined Clay Cement (LC3) in the cement industries in order to reduce the carbon dioxide emissions by up to 40% compared to the standard cement, and the energy consumption by 20%.
The SDC has also offered to support the cement industries in the State in adopting the LC3 technology.
The offer came at a conference on the utility of LC3 organised by the SDC in Chennai in association with the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) on Thursday.
Unique blend
On the occasion, Jonathan Demenge, Head of Cooperation and Counsellor at the Embassy of Switzerland in India, said the SDC proposed the use of LC3 keeping in view the fact that cement production was responsible for around 8% of man-made CO2 emissions. Generally, 95% clinker and 5% gypsum were used in cement production. However, limestone and calcined clay cement make a unique blend of clinker, calcined clay, limestone and gypsum.
India was the world’s 2 nd largest producer of cement, and the consumption was expected to grow from 6% to 10% annually.
The SDC called upon the governments to encourage the cement units to use LC3 on a much larger scale to achieve the stated objective.
PAT scheme
Reading out the message of Special Chief Secretary (Energy) K. Vijayanand, SECM CEO A. Chandra Sekhara Reddy said the State government was making all-out efforts to enhance energy efficiency in the industrial sector through efficient use of energy, and reduce energy cost and industrial greenhouse gas emissions by implementing Perform, Achieve & Trade (PAT) scheme.
As on date, 20 major cement industries were covered under the PAT scheme in Andhra Pradesh. Their annual production was around 33 million tonnes, and they saved energy of 0.35 Million Tons of Oil Equivalent (4,070 million units worth ₹2,400 crore). The corresponding reduction in CO2 emissions was 1.05 million tonnes, he observed.
IIT-M professors Manu Santhanam and Ravindra Gettu; Mariana Canut from Danish engineering company FLSmidth; and Soumen Maity of Technology and Action for Rural Advancement (TARA) were among those present.
