CONSTRUCTION solutions firm Holcim is planning to increase its consumption of residual plastic wastes as alternative fuel in cement production to help the Philippine government in its waste-management efforts.
“Holcim Philippines is a committed partner in the country’s development and we are contributing more beyond building materials,” said John Stull, president and CEO of Holcim Philippines.
Based on the latest report of the United Nations Environment Program, the Philippines, China, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam account for more than 50 percent of plastic wastes that end up in bodies of water worldwide.
Several groups in the country support the use of waste-to-energy technologies as a safe measure to reduce plastics leaking into oceans.
While mainly known as a cement maker, Holcim Philippines is among those innovative organizations that contributes to the reduction of the country’s plastics concern. The company utilizes coprocessing technology, wherein qualified materials such as nonrecyclable plastics are used as an alternative to coal in producing cement, through its waste-management unit Geocycle.
Since the latter’s inception in 2010, Holcim Philippines has co-processed over 25,000 metric tons of plastic wastes from different industrial partners and local governments. This practice lessens the firm’s conventional use of fuel while providing a sustainable waste-management option that helps mitigate plastic wastes ending up in landfills and oceans.
In coprocessing, waste materials like plastic are fed into the high-temperature kilns along with other raw components of cement. Such process completely eliminates the wastes and converts them to energy for cement production. Philippine authorities approved the technology, which is widely used globally for waste management because of its proven advantages in environmental and safety performance.
“Our Geocycle business is a clear example as it helps alleviate the country’s waste-management challenges, which is expected to grow along with the economy,” Stull said.
“Geocycle is stepping up engagement with the private sector and studying possible collaboration with a number of local governments on providing its coprocessing services,” he added.
Holcim’s waste-management arm is looking to have pilot projects with a number of localities in 2019 to show the advantages of its waste-management service over current alternatives such as landfilling.
The building solutions provider offers products ranging from structuring to finishing applications for infrastructure projects and even simple home repairs. It has cement manufacturing facilities in La Union, Bulacan, Misamis Oriental and Davao, as well as aggregates and dry-mix business and technical-support facilities for building solutions.
The cement manufacturer is a member of the LafargeHolcim Group present in 80 countries with over 80,000 employees.
The publicly listed firm reported its revenues reached P18.8 billion for the first half of 2018, or 8 percent higher than the P17.4 billion recorded during the same period last year, on the back of higher sales volumes of cement and aggregates. Net income, though, declined from P2.1 billion to P1.6 billion during the two periods in review.