The ICAEN grants a subsidy for the installation of an energy recovery system in the Sant Vicenç dels Horts factory

The Sant Vicenç dels Horts factory reaches a new record in the use of alternative fuels

Almost exactly a decade after the start of energy recovery at Cementos Molins Industrial, the Sant Vicenç dels Horts factory has reached a historic mark in terms of the use of waste as a source of energy. In June 2021, 57% of the heat consumed in furnace 6 was contributed by alternative fuels. This data, indicative of the company’s good environmental conduct, has helped reach a historic milestone: during the first half of the year, more than half of the fuel consumed by the furnace has come from alternative sources to traditional fossil fuels.

It should be remembered that energy recovery is considered by the European Union to be one of the best available techniques (BAT) for cement kilns, and its practice is strongly recommended. In fact, in the leading countries in environmental protection, the substitution of fossil fuels reaches levels close to 80% (Austria) and greater than 70% (Germany) of the total thermal energy consumed.

The energy recovery of products that can no longer be reused or recycled is also one of the safest ways to meet the decarbonization objectives that the cement industry, and with it CMI, has set for 2050. The use The calorific potential of waste such as wood, out-of-use tires or sewage sludge generates, among others, three main environmental advantages: it saves the consumption of fossil fuels, it avoids landfilling and the consequent pollution problems of soil, water and air from these products, and reduces emissions of carbon dioxide, the gas that causes global warming.

In this line of environmental protection, CMI plans to introduce changes in management and new investments in the factory to take another step and get closer to the levels of the best factories in Europe. At the moment, it is already one of the leading companies in energy recovery in the entire Spanish state.