Emergency Alert for Cement, Factory Managers at Production Sites Also Request Regulatory Easing

"Hard to Guarantee Safety of Reduction Facilities, Concerns Over Production Halt and Trillions in Sunk Investment"
"Easing Emission Standards, Will Further Expand Cooperation with Government and Fulfill Environmental Responsibility"

The cement industry is facing an emergency. In September, the heads of major domestic cement companies jointly requested the relaxation of nitrogen oxide (NOx) emission standards, but when the government did not accept this, the cement production sites also issued statements expressing their desperation.

On the 13th, eight plant managers responsible for nine production plants of major domestic cement companies issued a "Joint Statement Requesting the Relaxation of Nitrogen Oxide (NOx) Emission Regulations" through the Korea Cement Association.

Cement production facilities at Hanil Hyundai Cement Yeongwol Plant. Provided by Hanil Hyundai Cement

The government announced on September 13th a legislative notice for the "Partial Amendment (Draft) of the Enforcement Rules of the Special Act on Air Quality Improvement in Air Management Zones," which requires cement companies in the Chungbuk region to gradually reduce NOx emissions from 135 ppm in 2025 to 110 ppm by 2029, with implementation starting next year.

After the cement industry issued a statement under the name of their CEOs and held several consultations with relevant ministries, the government was reported to have insufficiently reflected the industry's position in the bill. As a result, production sites have also begun requesting the need for regulatory relaxation.

In their statement, the plant managers of cement production plants said, "We agree with the active reduction of NOx and the introduction of high-efficiency NOx reduction facilities, but global cement companies in countries such as Germany, which have already introduced and applied these technologies, are experiencing significant difficulties due to technical instability." They pointed out, "Despite no cases of application to domestic cement plants that are two to three times larger and more integrated than overseas plants, if installation is pursued by only referring to operational cases from other industries, it is difficult to guarantee the stability of the equipment."

They continued, "This could lead to equipment shutdowns or reinstallation, resulting not only in production stoppages but also in efficiency declines, turning the trillions of won invested in installation and operation into sunk costs," expressing their concerns.

In fact, between 2018 and 2019 in Germany, cement plants that installed high-efficiency reduction facilities experienced various problems such as ▲dust accumulation and catalyst performance degradation ▲exhaust gas temperature control issues ▲installation space and design problems ▲system shutdowns due to operation and maintenance issues, which reportedly led to design changes or reinstallation.

They also requested consideration of the practical difficulties caused by the recession. The cement industry reported that due to the sharp decline in cement shipments caused by the downturn in the construction market, sales in the third quarter decreased by about 11%, operating profit by about 24%, and net profit by about 65%. As a result, cement shipments this year are expected to decrease by double digits to approximately 44 million tons, and there is a high possibility that shipments will fall below 40 million tons next year. This essentially means there is no additional investment capacity for installing high-efficiency reduction facilities.

Therefore, the plant managers requested, "Please relax the 2029 Best Available Control Technology (BACT) standard concentration under the Air Management Zone Act (Chungbuk region) to 120 ppm so that it sufficiently reflects the situation of cement production plants and can be realized through the advancement of the currently applied Selective Non-Catalytic Reduction (SNCR) technology."

They also promised, "If the emission standards are relaxed, we will further expand cooperation with the government for additional NOx reduction and fulfill our environmental responsibilities through continuous efforts to secure practically reducible facility technologies and invest in facilities."

The Korea Cement Association plans to deliver the CEOs' statement requesting NOx regulation relaxation from September and the joint statement from the production plant managers to the Ministry of Environment.

A representative of the Korea Cement Association said, "If the business conditions of companies worsen amid the recent domestic and international economic crises, the impact on the domestic economy will be difficult to estimate," adding, "We hope for policy flexibility so that the cement industry can overcome the internal and external management crises it faces and contribute to national economic development, including the recovery of the construction market."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.