The 12th Africa Cement
Trade Summit has
kicked off in Abidjan,
Cote d’Ivoire, with the
Group Managing Director
of Dangote Cement Plc, Mr.
Arvind Pathak enlightening
industry players on how
the cement giant is leading
the campaign for save
the environment through
sustainable production of
cement with the utilisation of
Alternative Fuels (AF).
Mr. Pathak said cement
production is an energy-
intensive process which
consumes thermal energy
of about 3.3GJ/tonne
of clinker produced,
and its electrical energy
consumption is in the
region of about 90 –
120kWh /tonne of cement.
He noted that
decarbonisation is no longer an
option but a necessity, with the
use of alternative fuels, such
as municipal, agricultural, and
industrial wastes, in the place
of fossil fuels, which have
been effective in emissions
reduction.
Mr. Pathak was delivering
a paper titled “Utilisation
of Alternative Fuels as a
Strategy for Sustainable
Cement production in Africa”
at the Summit organised
by the Singapore-based
Center for Management. The
summit has in attendance
cement companies’ Chief
Executives, Cement Industry
Service Providers and other
critical sector stakeholders
from across the world.
According to the
Dangote Cement Chief
Executive, who was
represented by the Group’s
Head of Sustainability,
Dr. Igazeuma Okoroba,
Alternative Fuel as opposed
to fossil fuels emit less CO2
when combusted and that
agricultural biomass are
known to be carbon neutral.
He noted that with
the level of cement
consumption worldwide
reaching 4.2 billion tonnes
in 2020 and as population
is projected to grow by
12-23% in 2050 due to
rapid urbanisation, the
demand for cement will
also grow, therefore the
need to prioritise the
inclusion of alternative
fuels in fuel mix is crucial
to address climate change
concerns.