India’s Tata Steel Limited’s ferroalloys plant located at Gopalpur in the eastern state of Odisha has successfully transitioned from using furnace oil to liquefied natural gas (LPG) for its energy requirements, a company statement said on Monday., August 25
The shift from furnace oil to LPG will substantially reduce the plant’s carbon footprint while ensuring higher operational efficiency, the statement said.
The transition follows an agreement between Tata Steel Limited and government-run oil refiner-marketer Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), under which the latter would supply an agreed quantity of LPG to the Gopalpur plant which is operated under the steel producer’s Ferro Alloys and Minerals Division (FAMD).
The plant has installed an LPG facility and will use the cleaner fuel for preheating the chrome ore that is used for producing chrome ore briquettes. The facility will enable the steel major to completely replace the use of furnace oil as a fuel with natural gas, marking a transformative step towards cleaner and more sustainable industrial operations.
Earlier, FAMD had replaced the use of furnace oil with piped natural gas (PNG) at its ferroalloy plant located at Jajpur, also in Odisha.