Egypt-based Arabian Cement Company (ACC) said it has won top hoours from the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM8), a high-level global forum that promotes policies and programmes to advance clean energy.

CEM8 energy ministers presented the ‘2017 Award of Excellence in Energy Management’ to Mahmoud Mohsen, director of the energy department at ACC, at the annual CEM meeting in Beijing, China, earlier this month.

An independent panel of international experts selected only three organisations worldwide for this top honour in energy management. ACC is the first in Egypt and second across the Middle East to receive this award since the launch of the programme in 2010, said a statement from the company.

This award is part of the CEM Energy Management Leadership Awards programme, managed by CEM’s Energy Management Working Group (EMWG), which includes representatives from Australia, Canada, Chile, China, Denmark, the European Commission, Finland, Germany, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Sweden, UAE, and the US, it added.

To enter the awards programme, ACC said it had developed and submitted a detailed case study describing its experiences and results using ISO 50001 at ACC’s plant.

This award-winning case study is available on the CEM website as an inspiration and resource for other organisations interested in achieving significant and enduring energy and cost savings.
 
In the case study, ACC describes key aspects of its ISO 50001-certified energy management system and identifies resulting benefits, which includes: a total of 8 per cent energy performance improvement over three years; around $9 million annual energy cost savings and 1.3 years payback period; around 130,000 tonnes carbon emissions avoided over three years; long term reduction in operation and maintenance costs through energy efficient designs and procurement strategy; better competitiveness resulting from alleviating the cost of traditional energy sources; improved operation efficiency; improved maintenance practices.

CEO Sergio Alcantarilla said: “As a leading player in the Egyptian market, ACC is constantly looking for ways to make its business more environmentally friendly as well as more efficient.”

“With strong commitment towards enhancing our operations, we were among the first cement producers to substitute natural gas with alternative fuel in Egypt,” he said.

“Substituting natural gas with alternative energy sources rendered our operations safer to the community in which we are located and helped reducing the consumption of natural gas. As such, we’re determined to continue to adhere to the international best practices in this field, as we remain at the forefront of our sector,” he added.-TradeArabia News Service