Economy & Market

Revival is in the Offing

Published

8 years ago

May 31, 2018

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The demand growth trend picked up steam in FY18. Expectations are rife that FY19 will consolidate these gains and result in higher capacity utilisation, if not pricing power.
After a couple of years of demand pressures and price pressures, the Indian cement industry is expecting a full-fledged recovery in demand growth in the current fiscal. Cement production grew by 6.3 per cent and touched 298 million metric tonnes (MMT) in FY18 (2017-18), from 280 MMT in FY17, which is a 1.2 per cent fall compared to FY16. Apart from growth in demand seen in some key markets, rating agency ICRA has attributed this growth also to "the base effect of the demonetisation-driven low demand during the corresponding period of last year."
The demand for cement also dipped along with the deceleration in growth in the economy following currency demonetisation in November 2016, which derailed the growth momentum across several industries. Close on the heels of this debilitating disruption, hurried introduction of Goods and Services Tax (GST) has also left its negative trail. The growth reported in FY18 has come from the last two quarters of the year – at 11 per cent and 18 per cent respectively, despite negative growth registered in the first half of the fiscal. Analysts are considering this growth trend to be the first sign of sustained growth to be witnessed in the next few years.
Two-thirds of the total cement demand comes from housing and the remaining from infrastructure and industrial construction. "Two areas where we evidently see growth from for the cement industry is from housing and infrastructure. For the current year, we expect 5.5-6.5 per cent growth in cement production, says Ashish K Nainan, Research Analyst – Industry Research, CARE Ratings.
Is there any scope for increasing cement consumption in India? The answer is in the affirmative. Despite India being the second largest producer of cement in the world, even after two-and-a-half decades of globalisation, its per capita consumption is down in the dumps. "India is one of the lowest in per capita consumption of cement. Average consumption in India is just ~200 kg/year compared to 1700 kg/year in China and 660kg/year in Vietnam (comparable developing economy). The global average consumption is far ahead at 580kg/year," says Anoop Kumar Saxena, CEO-VICAT in India.
Calling FY18 as ‘a landmark year for the industry’ which has surpassed all odds and delivered reasonably good operating results, Vaibhav Agarwal, Analyst with PhillipCapital India Research, says, "FY19 will be a ‘year of pure execution’ driven by improving operating efficiencies, focus on a sustainable rise in volumes, and the industry re-establishing its attention on improving cement prices, led by UltraTech." Triggers
Sabyasachi Majumdar, Senior Vice President & Group Head, ICRA, who has hinted at the first signs of revival in cement demand as back as in February 2018 itself and predicted around 5 per cent growth in FY19, said then, "This demand growth is bolstered by a pick-up in the housing segment – primarily affordable housing, rural housing and higher infrastructure spend. Improved rural incomes, higher rural credit and increased allocation for rural, agricultural and allied sector are likely to boost rural housing demand."
"Further, Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) continues to be a major driver for cement demand with around 50 lakh houses targeted in the rural areas and 37 lakh houses in the urban areas in FY2019. Also, the demand is likely to be supported by the higher outlay on urban housing and the increased thrust on infrastructure as reflected in 21 per cent higher allocation," Majumdar added.
Despite several micro and macro challenges, such as demonetisation, GST, RERA, bans on overloading, sand mining, and petcoke, many of which were structural, the industry has seen a visible demand recovery in FY18, especially in the second half.
"A substantial recovery in rural demand especially from Individual House builder (IHB) segment along with sustained pickup in infrastructure development aided demand growth. We believe demand growth for current fiscal should remain healthy mainly to be supported by PMAY housing projects and continued thrust on infrastructure development," says Binod Kumar Modi – Senior Analyst – Reliance Securities.
Real estate sector witnessed disruption in construction and sales activity beginning demonetization exercise. The disruption continued with builders taking a cautious approach to RERA [The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016] implementation, temporarily halting new sales or construction. Implementation of RERA in May 2017 impacted the demand for cement from real estate segment in Q1 and Q2 of FY18.
FY18 witnessed implementation of Union Government backed mega-infrastructure projects such as Bharatmala for roads, Sagarmala for ports and development of dedicated freight corridors and smart city project.
"We feel the current focus from the Government is positive for the cement sector in particular. Infrastructure offers a huge tapable market for cement in India, but is limited due to limited funding for these projects at the moment. On the other hand, housing in rural and urban markets are expected to witness steady demand on the back of higher disposable income and factors like good monsoons," says Nainan.
The demonetisation exercise had impacted the demand from rural and retail real estate segment during the second half of Q3 and, Q4 in FY17. But the same has evidently recovered during FY18.
Demand drivers
VICAT India, having presence mostly in South India, expects that cement demand expected to grow ~7-8 per cent year-on-year (YoY) over the next two-three years. By now it is a given with several analysts predicting that the demand growth for cement during FY19 will surpass 5 per cent level.
Cement consumption is broadly classified into demand from three distinct segments:
Housing and real estate (65%)
Public infrastructure (20%)
Industrial development (15%)
All the analysts ICR spoke to are voting for affordable housing as the prime mover of cement demand in the coming years. Nainan of CARE says, "If one were to go by the bare-minimum market demand, affordable housing is a 8-10 billion sq.ft. opportunity. And this would form the backbone for cement demand over the next 2-3 years. Expect a 6-7 per cent growth in demand in the housing segment for cement.
Additionally, the Government has set aside Rs 6,500 crore for affordable housing in the budget which will work like a stimulus."
Stating that ICRA expects the cement demand to show a growth of around 6 per cent in FY2019, Majumdar says, "This is primarily driven by a pick-up in the affordable and rural housing segments and infrastructure – primarily road and irrigation projects. The budget of FY2019 also provides support in this direction with higher rural credit, increased MSP, increased allocation for rural, agricultural and allied sectors along with continued focus on the PMAY and infrastructure investments."
Table 1. Affordable Housing – Gross Budgetary support)
2017-18 2018-19
PMAY-Grameen Rs. 23,000 Rs. 21,000
PMAY-Urban Rs. 6,043 Rs. 6,500
"The cement consumption stood at an estimated volume of 305 million tonnes (MT) in FY18, and is expected to grow at 6-7 per cent over the next 3-5 years, on the back of higher government spending in rural and urban housing projects and growth in infrastructure spends," says Madhumita Basu, Chief of Sales, Marketing & Innovation, Nuvoco.
In the residential real estate segment, the demand was subdued in comparison to previous year due to introduction of RERA in May 2017. RERA led to disruption in construction activity and real estate developers went slow on launching new projects in Q1 and Q2 FY18. However, this dip in demand was offset by demand from construction of affordable housing.
BK Modi believes that infrastructure share in total cement consumption is likely to move up from ~25-30 per cent going forward, while explaining, "Growing urbanisation and huge infrastructure deficit in the country – which requires infrastructure development as to support sustained GDP growth – are likely to ensure higher cement consumption in this segment."
Infrastructure projects like smart cities, metro projects, roads, ports and airport projects are expected to boost cement demand would witness higher growth of 8-10 per cent from this segment. "Infrastructure development has been a key plank for the current Central Government and few key projects are nearing completion especially in the view of a nearing General Election," says Nainan.
Infrastructure contributed immensely to the cement demand in FY2018. And pre-election spending has been one of the key demand drivers for cement historically in India, particularly from infrastructure segment. It can be sensed from the favourable budget allocations on Metros, road and highways, railways, ports and irrigation projects. "We further expect traction in road construction to continue in FY19 considering 7,400 km (up 70 per cent YoY) projects awarded in FY18. Additionally, Bharatmala programme – which targets to build approximately 34,800 km by 2022 in Phase I, with an estimated investment of Rs 5.3 trillion – is likely to aid sustained demand growth for cement industry," says BK Modi. Capacity additions
In their zeal to gain market share, aggressive manufacturers added robust capacity, leading to capacity utilisations collapsing from peak full capacity in 2008 to less than 70 per cent. However, expansions helped many manufacturers gain scale and size. "From here, we expect the industry to consolidate its position and then announce green field capex. Brownfield expansions and revival of unproductive assets will drive capex from FY19 to FY21," says Agarwal of PhillipCapital.
Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka are the largest limestone producing states in the country which is an essential raw material for cement. "Currently, cement production capacity is 441 MMT and expected to increase to 467.3 MMT by 2019 and likely to further increase to 484.1 MMT by 2020-2021. Significant concentration of the cement capacities will continue to increase in southern and western regions, largely due to bulk of limestone reserves in these regions," says Saxena of VICAT.
However, capacity utilisation is expected to remain in the range of 65-70 per cent in the next two-three years, analysts say.Consolidation
Acquiring cement assets is cost-effective for the acquirer and provides access to new market and a ready-made supplier network. Cement industry is fragmented and 55-60 per cent market share is controlled by large players and consolidation in cement sector has not significantly changed the share of large players.
Agarwal feels that incremental consolidation will be slow. However, BK Modi is of the view that considering the ongoing high cost scenario and muted realisation environment, it could be difficult for many small and mid-sized cement companies to operate in dismal profitability. "Hence, industry consolidation will continue going forward."
Nuvoco’s Basu thinks that with the major players adding capacity; the prices will come under pressure as ramping up of new capacity and capturing market growth would take priority. Looking ahead
The demand for cement will continue to grow at above 5 per cent level in the next two-three years, mainly with push coming from affordable housing projects in both urban and rural areas. The next one year is expected to be good for cement demand from infrastructure segment, being a pre-poll year. Industrial consumption of cement has been muted since November 2016 and it is unlikely to get a leg up.
The hectic consolidation activity is expected to slow down a bit going ahead, but the scene is expected to shift to smaller and newer players, with costs inching up day by day and continuing pricing pressures. Though operating environment of the industry has improved in FY18, the same cannot be said about FY19 given rising costs, unless demand spikes.
Availability of sand is a major challenge to the construction activity in India. Though artificial sand is being pitched as an alternative, its acceptability is still low.
Cement capacities, expansions and prices will be driven by regional considerations more than anything else. CARE ratings predicts that the all-India prices will remain in the range of Rs 317 (+/- 5 per cent per bag post GST) during the year."
From the present stand point, the industry has to guard against risks like hindrance to volume growth momentum and rising costs.– BS SRINIVASALU REDDY

Concrete

PROMECON introduces infrared-based tertiary air measurement system for cement kilns

Published

2 days ago

May 20, 2026

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The new solution promisescontinuous, real-time tertiary air flow measurement in cement plant operations.

PROMECON GmbH has launched the McON IR Compact, an infrared-based measuring system designed to deliver continuous, real-time tertiary air flow measurement in cement plant operations. The system addresses the longstanding process control challenge of accurate tertiary air monitoring under extreme kiln conditions. It uses patented infrared time-of-flight measurement technology that operates without calibration or maintenance intervention.

Precise tertiary air measurement is a critical requirement for stable rotary kiln operation. The McON IR Compact is engineered to function reliably at temperatures up to 1,200°C and in the presence of abrasive clinker dust. Its vector-based digital measurement architecture ensures that readings remain unaffected by swirl, dust deposits or drift. Due to these conditions conventional measurement systems in pyroprocess environments are often compromised.

The system is fully non-intrusive and requires no K-factors, recalibration or periodic readjustment, enabling years of uninterrupted operation. This design directly supports plant availability and reduces the maintenance overhead typically associated with process instrumentation in high-temperature zones.

PROMECON has deployed the McON IR Compact at multiple cement facilities, including Warta Cement in Poland. Plant operators report that the system has aided in identifying blockages, optimising purging cycles for gas burners, and supplying accurate flow data for AI-based process optimisation programmes. The practical outcomes include more stable kiln operation, improved process control, and earlier detection of process disturbances.

On the energy side, real-time tertiary air data enables reduction in induced draft fan load and helps flatten process oscillations across the pyroprocess. This translates to lower fuel and energy consumption, fewer unplanned shutdowns, and a measurable reduction in NOx peaks. This directly reflects on the downstream cost implications for plants operating SCR or SNCR systems for emissions compliance.

Concrete

Filtration Technology is Critical for Efficient Logistics

Published

7 days ago

May 15, 2026

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Niranjan Kirloskar, MD, Fleetguard Filters, makes the case that filtration technology, which has been long treated as a routine consumable, is in fact a strategic performance enabler across every stage of cement production and logistics.

India’s cement industry forms the core for infrastructure growth of the country. With an expected compound annual growth rate of six to eight per cent, India has secured its position as the second-largest cement producer globally. This growth is a result of the increasing demand across, resulting in capacity expansion. Consequently, cement manufacturers are now also focusing on running the factories as efficiently as possible to stay competitive and profitable.
While a large portion of focus still remains on production technologies and capacity utilisation, the hidden factor in profitability is the efficiency of cement logistics. The logistics alone account for nearly 30 per cent to 40 per cent of the total cost of cement, making efficiency in this segment a key lever for profitability and reliability.
In the midst of this complex and high-intensity ecosystem, filtration often remains one of the most underappreciated yet essential enablers of performance.

A demanding operational landscape
Cement production and logistics inherently operate in some of the harshest industrial environments. With processes such as quarrying, crushing, grinding, clinker production, and bulk material handling expose the machinery to constant high temperatures, heavy loads, and dust, often the silent destructive force for engines.
The ecosystem is abrasive, and often one with a high contamination index. These challenging conditions demand equipment such as the excavators, crushers, compressors, and transport vehicles to perform and perform efficiently. The continuous exposure to contamination across every aspect like air, fuel, lubrication, and even hydraulic systems causes long-term damage. Studies have also shown that 70 to 80 per cent of hydraulic system failures are directly linked to contamination, while primary cause of engine wear is inadequate air filtration.
For engines as heavy as these, even a minor contaminant has a cascading effect; reducing efficiency, performance and culminating to unplanned downtime. Particles as small as 5 to 10 microns, far smaller than a human hair (~70 microns), can cause significant damage to critical engine components. In an industry where margins are closely linked to operational efficiency, such disruptions can significantly affect both cost structures and delivery timelines.

Dust management: A persistent challenge
Dust is a natural by-product in cement operations. From drilling and blasting in the quarries to packing in plants, this fine particulate matter does occupy a large space in operations. Dust concentration levels in quarry and crushing zones often create extremely high particulate exposure for equipment. These fine particles, when enter the engines and critical systems, accelerates the wear and tear of the component, affecting directly the operational efficiency. Over time every block fall; engine performance declines, fuel consumption rises, and maintenance cycles shorten. In this case, effective air filtration is the natural first line of defence. Advanced filtration systems are designed to capture high volumes of particulate matter while maintaining consistent airflow, ensuring that engines and equipment operate under optimal conditions.
In high-dust applications, as in cement production, even the filtration systems are expected to sustain performance over extended periods without the need of frequent replacement. This becomes crucial in remote quarry locations where access to frequent maintenance may be limited.

Fluid cleanliness and system integrity
Beyond air filtration, fluid systems also play a crucial role for equipment reliability in cement operations. Fuel systems are required to remain free from contaminants for efficient working of combustion and injection protection. Additionally, lubrication systems also need to maintain the oil purity to reduce friction and prevent any premature wear of moving parts. The hydraulic systems, which are key to several heavy equipment operations, are especially sensitive to contamination.
If fine particles or water enters these systems, it can lead to reduced efficiency, erratic performance, and eventual failure of the system. Modern filtration systems are designed with high-efficiency media capable of removing extremely fine contaminants, with advanced fuel and oil filtration solutions filtering particles as small as two to five microns. Multi-stage filtration systems further ensure that fluid performance is maintained even under challenging operating conditions.
Another critical aspect of fuel systems is water separation. Removing moisture helps prevent corrosion, improves combustion efficiency and enhances overall engine reliability. Modern water separation technologies can achieve over 95 per cent efficiency in removing water from fuel systems.

Ensuring reliability across the value chain
Filtration plays a critical role across every stage of cement logistics:
• Quarry operations: Equipment operates in highly abrasive environments, requiring strong protection against dust ingress and hydraulic contamination.
• Processing units: Crushers, kilns, and grinding mills depend on clean lubrication and cooling systems to sustain continuous operations.
• Material handling systems: Pneumatic and mechanical systems rely on clean air and fluid systems for efficiency and reliability.
• Transportation networks: Bulk carriers and trucks must maintain engine health and fuel efficiency to ensure timely deliveries.
Across these operations, filtration plays a vital role; as it supports consistent equipment performance while reducing the risk of unexpected failures.
Effective filtration solutions can reduce unscheduled equipment failures by 30 to 50 per cent across heavy-duty operations.

Uptime as a strategic imperative
In cement manufacturing, uptime is currency. Downtime not only delays the production, but it also greatly impacts the supply commitments and logistics planning. With the right filtration systems, contaminants are kept at bay from entering the
critical systems, and they also significantly extend the service intervals.
Optimised filtration can extend service intervals by 20 to 40 per cent, reducing maintenance frequency while maintaining consistent performance across demanding operating conditions. Filtration systems designed for heavy-duty applications sustain efficiency throughout their lifecycle, ensuring reliable protection with minimal interruptions. This leads to improved equipment availability, lower maintenance costs, and more predictable operations, with well-maintained systems capable of achieving uptime levels of over 90 to 95 per cent in challenging cement environments.

Supporting emission and sustainability goals
With the rising environmental awareness, the cement industry too is aligning with the stricter norms and sustainability targets. In this scenario, the operational efficiency is directly linked to emission control.

Air and fuel systems that are clean enable
much more efficient combustion. They also reduce emissions from both the stationary equipment and transport fleets. Similarly, with a well-maintained fluid cleanliness, emission systems function better. Poor combustion due to contamination can increase emissions by 5 to 10 per cent, making clean systems critical for compliance.
Additionally, efficient and longer lasting filtration systems significantly reduce any waste generation and contribute to increased sustainable maintenance practices. Extended-life filtration solutions can reduce filter disposal and maintenance waste by 15 to 20 per cent. Smart and efficient filtration in this case plays an important role in meeting the both regulatory and environmental objectives within the industry.

Advancements in filtration technology
Over the years, there has been a significant evolution in the filtration technology to meet the modern industrial applications.
Key developments include:
• High-efficiency filtration media capable of capturing very fine particles without restricting flow
• Compact and integrated designs that combine multiple filtration functions
• Extended service life solutions that reduce replacement frequency and maintenance downtime
• Application-specific engineering tailored to different stages of cement operations
Modern multi-layer filtration media can improve dust-holding capacity by up to two to three times compared to conventional systems, while maintaining consistent performance. These advancements have transformed filtration from a basic maintenance component into a critical performance system.

Adapting to diverse operating conditions
The cement industry of India operates across diverse geographies. Spanning across regions with arid regions with higher dust levels, to the coastal areas with higher humidity, challenges of each region pose different threats to the engines. Modern filtration systems are thus tailored to address these unique challenges of each region.
Indian operating environments often range from 0°C to over 50°C, with some of the highest dust loads globally in mining zones.
Additionally, filtration technology can also be customised to variations which then align the system design with factors like dust load, temperature, and equipment usage patterns. Equipment utilisation levels in India are typically higher than global averages, making robust filtration even more critical. This approach ensures optimal performance and durability across different operational contexts.

Impact on total cost of ownership
Filtration has a direct and measurable impact on the total cost of ownership of equipment.
Effective filtration leads to:
• Lower wear and tear on critical components
• Reduced maintenance and repair costs
• Improved fuel efficiency
• Extended equipment life
• Higher operational uptime
Effective filtration can extend engine life by 20 to 30 per cent and reduce overall maintenance costs by 15 to 25 per cent over the equipment lifecycle. These benefits collectively enhance productivity and reduce lifecycle costs. Conversely, inadequate filtration can result in frequent breakdowns, increased maintenance expenditure, and reduced asset utilisation.

Building a more efficient cement ecosystem
With the rising demand across various sectors, the cement industry is expected to expand at an unprecedented rate. This growth is forcing the production to move towards a more efficient and resilient system of operations. This requires attention not only to production technologies but also to the supporting systems that enable consistent performance. Filtration must be viewed as a strategic investment rather than a routine consumable. By ensuring the cleanliness of air and fluids across systems, it supports reliability, efficiency, and sustainability.

The road ahead
The future of cement logistics will be shaped by increasing mechanisation, digital monitoring, and stricter environmental standards. The industry is also witnessing a shift towards predictive maintenance and condition monitoring, where filtration performance is increasingly integrated with real-time equipment diagnostics.
In this evolving landscape, the role of filtration will become even more critical. As equipment becomes more advanced and operating conditions more demanding, the need for precise contamination control will continue to grow. From quarry to construction site, filtration technology underpins the performance of every critical system. It enables equipment to operate efficiently, reduces operational risks, and supports the industry’s broader goals of growth and sustainability. In many ways, it is the unseen force that keeps the cement ecosystem moving, quietly ensuring that every link in the value chain performs as expected.

About the author
Niranjan Kirloskar, Managing Director, Fleetguard Filters, is focused on driving innovation, operational excellence, and long-term business growth through strategic and people-centric leadership. With a strong foundation in ethics and forward-thinking decision-making, he champions a culture of collaboration, accountability, and technological advancement.

Concrete

Cement’s Next Fuel Shift

Published

7 days ago

May 15, 2026

admin

Jignesh Kindaria highlights how Thermal Substitution Rate (TSR) is emerging as a critical lever for cost savings, decarbonisation and competitive advantage in the cement industry.

India is simultaneously grappling with two crises: a mounting waste emergency and an urgent need to decarbonise its most carbon-intensive industries. The cement sector, the second-largest in the world and the backbone of the nation’s infrastructure ambitions, sits at the centre of both. It consumes enormous quantities of fossil fuel, and it has the technical capacity to consume something else entirely: the waste our cities cannot get rid of.
According to CPCB and NITI Aayog projections, India generates approximately 62.4 million tonnes of municipal solid waste annually, with that figure expected to reach 165 million tonnes by 2030. Much of this waste is energy-rich and non-recyclable. At the same time, cement kilns operate at material temperatures of approximately 1,450 degrees Celsius, with gas temperatures reaching 2,000 degrees. This high-temperature environment is ideal for co-processing, ensuring the complete thermal destruction of organic compounds without generating toxic residues. The physics are in our favour. The infrastructure is not.
Pre-processing is not the support act for co-processing. It is the main event. Get the particle size wrong, get the moisture wrong, get the calorific value wrong and your kiln thermal stability will suffer the consequences.

The regulatory push is real
The Solid Waste Management (SWM) Rules 2026 mandate that cement plants progressively replace solid fossil fuels with Refuse-Derived Fuel (RDF), starting at a 5 per cent baseline and scaling to 15 per cent within six years. NITI Aayog’s 2026 Roadmap for Cement Sector Decarbonisation targets 20 to 25 per cent Thermal Substitution Rate (TSR) by 2030. Beyond compliance, every tonne of coal replaced by RDF generates measurable carbon reductions which is monetisable under India’s emerging Carbon Credit Trading Scheme (CCTS). TSR is no longer a sustainability metric. It is a financial lever.
Yet our own field assessments across multiple Indian cement plants reveal a sobering reality: the primary barrier to scaling AFR adoption is not waste availability. It is the fragmented and under-engineered pre-processing ecosystem that sits between the waste and the kiln.

Why Indian waste is a different engineering problem
Indian municipal solid waste is not the material that imported shredding equipment was designed for. Our waste streams frequently exceed 40 per cent to 50 per cent moisture content, particularly during monsoon cycles, saturated with abrasive inerts including sand, glass, and stone. Plants relying on imported OEM equipment face months of downtime awaiting proprietary spare parts. Machines built for segregated, low-moisture waste fail quickly and disrupt the entire pre-processing operation in Indian conditions.
The two most common failures we observe are what I call the biting teeth problem and the chewing teeth problem. Plants relying solely on a primary shredder reduce bulk waste to large fractions, but the output remains too coarse for stable kiln combustion. Others attempt to use a secondary shredder as a standalone unit without a primary stage to pre-size the feed, leading to catastrophic mechanical failure. When both stages are present but mismatched in throughput capacity, the system becomes a bottleneck. Achieving the 40 to 70 tonnes per hour required for meaningful coal displacement demands a precisely coordinated two-stage process.

Engineering a made-in-India answer
At Fornnax, our response to these challenges is grounded in one principle: Indian waste demands Indian engineering. Our systems are built around feedstock homogeneity, the holy grail of kiln stability. Consistent particle size and predictable calorific value are the foundation of stable kiln combustion. Without them, no TSR target is achievable at scale.
Our SR-MAX2500 Dual Shaft Primary Shredder (Hydraulic Drive) processes raw, baled, or loosely mixed MSW, C&I waste, bulky waste, and plastics, reducing them to approximately 150 mm fractions at throughputs of up to 40 tonnes per hour. The R-MAX 3300 Single Shaft Secondary Shredder (Hydraulic Drive), introduced in 2025, takes that primary output and produces RDF fractions in the 30 to 80 mm range at up to 30 tonnes per hour, specifically optimised for consistent kiln feeding. We have also introduced electric drive configurations under the SR-100 HD series, with capacities between 5 and 40 tonnes per hour, already operational at a leading Indian waste-processing facility.
Looking ahead, Fornnax is expanding its portfolio with the upcoming SR-MAX3600 Hydraulic Drive primary shredder at up to 70 tonnes per hour and the R-MAX2100 Hydraulic drive secondary shredder at up to 20 tonnes per hour, designed specifically for the large-scale throughput that higher TSR ambitions require.

The investment case is now
The 2070 Net-Zero target is not a distant goal for India’s cement sector. It starts today, with decisions being made on the plant floor.
The SWM Rules 2026 are already in effect, requiring cement plants to replace coal with RDF. Carbon credit markets are opening up, and coal prices are not going to get cheaper. Every tonne of coal a cement plant replaces with waste-derived fuel saves money on one side and generates carbon credit revenue on the other. Pre-processing infrastructure is no longer just a compliance requirement. It is a business investment with a measurable return.
The good news is that nothing is missing. The technology works. The waste is available in every Indian city. The government has provided the policy direction. The only thing standing between where the industry is today and where it needs to be is the commitment to build the right infrastructure.
The cement companies that move now will not just meet the regulations. They will be ahead of every competitor that waits.

About the author
Jignesh Kundaria is the Director and CEO of Fornnax Technology. Over an experience spanning more than two decades in the recycling industry, he has established himself as one of India’s foremost voices on waste-to-fuel technology and alternative fuel infrastructure.