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Berrima Cement Works upgrades with sustainable tech

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06 Dec, 2024

This post was originally published on Sustainability Matters

Boral has unveiled new carbon-reducing technology at its Berrima Cement Works, with Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen officially opening the upgraded facility on 4 December.

Located in the Southern Highlands region of New South Wales, Berrima Cement Works supplies 40% of cement in NSW and the Australian Capital Territory. The site is strategically important both for the company and Australia’s manufacturing capability.

The upgraded facility represents a significant milestone in Boral’s decarbonisation journey as it moves away from a reliance on emissions-intensive fuels.

A key part of the upgrade is the Chlorine Bypass, which reduces the build-up of chlorides and other alternative fuel by-products as clinker is produced in the cement works’ kiln. This allows Boral to work towards its decarbonisation goal without the risks associated with increased build-up of materials within the process.

Boral CEO Vik Bansal with Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen at the opening of the upgraded facility.

“From our federal highways to the Sydney Opera House and Parliament House in Canberra, for almost a century, the Berrima Cement Works have helped to build and shape Australia,” Boral CEO Vik Bansal said at the facility opening.

“We all understand that though cement is vital to construction and building our nation, it is carbon-intensive. Boral takes its responsibility to decarbonise our operations and comply with the Safeguard Mechanism obligations seriously.

“The Chlorine Bypass Facility reaffirms this commitment and moves our vital cement manufacturing infrastructure and Southern Highlands operations into a new era — one with less impact on the planet.”

Berrima Cement Works is one of the largest employers within the Wingecarribee Local Government Area, with about 115 people working in operational and administrative roles and approximately 350 people employed across integrated sites in the Southern Highlands. The cement works also indirectly support local jobs associated with logistics, contractors and suppliers.

“We thank both the federal government and NSW Government for their respective investment in this facility and remain committed to decarbonising our operations, in line with our net zero commitment,” Bansal said.

All images courtesy of Boral.

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ABB receives EPD status for gearless mill drive ring motor

ABB receives EPD status for gearless mill drive ring motor

ABB has gained Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) status for its Gearless Mill Drive (GMD) ring motor — technology used to drive large grinding mills in the mining industry.

An EPD is a standardised document that provides detailed information about the environmental impact of a product throughout its life cycle. Based on a comprehensive Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) study, the EPD highlights ABB’s commitment to transparency, environmental responsibility and supporting customers in making informed decisions on sustainability in their supply chains.

ABB analysed the environmental impact of a ring motor across its entire life cycle from supply chain and production to usage and end-of-life disposal. The study was conducted for a ring motor of a semi-autogenous grinding (SAG) mill with an installed power of 24 MW and was based on a reference service life of 25 years.

“Sustainability is at the core of our purpose at ABB, influencing how we operate and innovate for customers,” said Andrea Quinta, Sustainability Specialist at ABB. “By earning the Environmental Product Declaration for our ring motor, we emphasise our environmental stewardship and industry leadership for this technology. We adhered to the highest standards throughout this process, as we do in the ABB Ring Motor factory every day. This recognition highlights to the mining industry what they are bringing into their own operations when they work with ABB.”

The comprehensive LCA was conducted at ABB’s factory in Bilbao, Spain, and was externally verified and published in accordance with international standards ISO 14025 and ISO 14040/14044. It will remain valid for five years.

The ring motor, a key component of the GMD, is a drive system without any gears where the transmission of the torque between the motor and the mill is done through the magnetic field in the air gap between the motor stator and the motor rotor. It optimises grinding applications in the minerals and mining industries by enabling variable-speed operation, leading to energy and cost savings.

The full EPD for the ABB GMD Ring Motor can be viewed on EPD International.

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