Ashutosh Pandita, Director – Head, Cement Business, TKIL Industries, discusses India’s capacity expansion imperative and its decarbonisation ambition.

India is adding cement capacity at a pace that few industries anywhere in the world are matching. In this interview, Ashutosh Pandita, Director – Head, Cement Business, TKIL Industries, brings a whole-plant perspective to the conversation about innovation in cement.

How is innovation reshaping the way cement plants are designed, built and operated in India today?
Innovation today is driven by two parallel imperatives – rapid capacity addition to support India’s infrastructure growth and the need to reduce carbon footprint. Cement plants are evolving from conventional production units into high-performance, flexible and sustainable systems.
Design philosophy has shifted towards energy optimisation, lower clinker factor and adaptability to alternative fuels and raw materials. At TKIL, backed by thyssenkrupp Polysius technology and decades of Indian execution expertise, we are delivering solutions that combine speed, performance and sustainability. Operationally, innovation is about efficiency and reliability – reducing fuel consumption, optimising power usage, and ensuring consistent output quality, which are critical in today’s competitive environment.

Which technologies do you believe will have the biggest impact on cement manufacturing over the next decade?
The next decade will be defined by technologies that directly contribute to decarbonisation and efficiency:
Advanced alternative fuel feeding systems enabling higher AFR substitution
Calcined clay and low-clinker technologies to reduce emissions
Oxyfuel combustion and carbon capture as emerging solutions
Digitalisation for process optimisation and predictive control
In our view, calcined clay and low clinker technologies will have the biggest impact over the next decade as it will directly help to reduce clinker content in cement manufacturing.

How is TKIL leveraging digitalisation, AI and automation to improve plant efficiency and performance?
Digitalisation at TKIL is focused on improving operational efficiency and ensuring process stability, rather than just adopting technology for its own sake.
We are working on:
Process optimisation tools to reduce fuel and power consumption
Automation systems that enhance reliability and throughput
Integration of advanced monitoring and control systems
Our approach is practical – leveraging digital tools to deliver measurable improvements in productivity, energy efficiency and plant up time, in line with industry expectations.

What role do alternative fuels, alternative raw materials and low-carbon technologies play in your innovation roadmap?
They are at the core of our ‘Grey to Green’ transition roadmap.
Alternative fuels (AFR): Critical for reducing fossil fuel dependency
Alternative raw materials and calcined clay: Help lower clinker factor
Low-carbon technologies: Key for long-term decarbonisation
We have already introduced advanced AFR systems and are actively exploring next-generation solutions. These innovations are essential for supporting the industry’s net-zero journey.

How can equipment suppliers and cement manufacturers collaborate more effectively to accelerate innovation adoption?
As I have emphasised earlier, collaboration among stakeholders is critical to drive meaningful progress.
To accelerate innovation:
Technology providers must engage early in project lifecycle
There must be greater transparency and data sharing
Solutions should be co-created and customised
Industry-wide alignment of sustainability goals is essential
Achieving net-zero is not a single-company effort, it requires collective commitment across manufacturers, suppliers and regulators.

What are the biggest barriers to implementing new technologies in the cement industry, and how can they be overcome?
The transition is complex due to:
High capital intensity of green technologies
Operational challenges in adopting new processes
Need for skill development and training
However, the industry is moving forward with strong intent and urgency toward net zero, which is encouraging.
Overcoming barriers will require:
Demonstrating clear efficiency and sustainability benefits
Building technical capabilities within organisations
Encouraging policy and regulatory support

How is innovation helping the industry balance capacity expansion with sustainability and decarbonisation goals?
India is adding significant cement capacity annually due to infrastructure growth, which presents both opportunity and challenge.
Innovation enables us to address this by:
Improving energy efficiency per tonne of cement
Increasing AFR utilisation and reducing emissions
Adopting low-clinker and blended cement technologies
This ensures that growth is sustainable and aligned with national decarbonisation goals, especially India’s long-term net-zero ambitions.

What will define a truly future-ready cement plant in terms of technology, efficiency and environmental performance?
A future-ready plant will be:
Low-carbon by design, with high AFR capability and reduced clinker factor
Energy-efficient, optimised for minimum fuel and power consumption
Technologically advanced, integrating automation and digital monitoring
Flexible, capable of handling diverse fuels and raw materials
Most importantly, it will contribute meaningfully to the industry’s transition toward net-zero emissions, which is the defining goal for the future.

• Kanika Mathur