Lafarge tracks sustainability success and savings at Winnipeg Cement Terminal
April 28, 2021 - Winnipeg, Manitoba - Lafarge Canada keeps sustainability at the forefront of all its operations, across Canada, and the Winnipeg Cement Terminal is the next one on the list to reap the benefits of the company’s ongoing energy efficiency reviews. Maximizing sustainability is a paying proposition, too - with Canada’s Federal Carbon Tax impacting competitiveness, the energy-intensive cement industry keeps finding new and creative ways to manage energy consumption. The energy efficiency reviews prove, however, that solutions to these challenges don’t have to be complex - and that this ongoing measurement of energy baselines is critical in determining if potential opportunities for savings exist.
Cory Cannon, Vice President, Sales & Logistics West Cement Division, says, “Looking at our operations through the lens of sustainability tells us that we’ve got to keep an eye on the basics. Making easy, relatively small changes has a big impact on our sustainability goals. It doesn’t have to be intimidating or complicated.”
The Winnipeg Cement Terminal has been upgrading to higher efficiency equipment and lighting since 2017. Despite rising electricity costs and the implementation of the Federal Carbon Tax in January 2019 ($20/tonne) and January 2020 ($30/tonne), the facility has remained competitive through sustainable initiatives. The company is effectively managing rising electricity costs, Federal Carbon Taxes, and reducing GHG emissions - and the reviews confirm it.
“Despite rising electricity costs and Federal Carbon Taxes being implemented in January 2019 and 2020, we haven’t seen an increase in our costs or emissions,” says Greg Suderman, Winnipeg Terminal & Sales Manager. “We changed out old lighting fixtures in the silo, bag shed, high bay, and roadway to reduce our energy consumption and increase safety. We also worked with Manitoba Hydro to complete a compressed air audit - and that led us to switch out to low-pressure compressors. And with the upcoming increases to the carbon tax, it’s absolutely worth it, in every way.”
The steady carbon tax increase means that organizations, like Lafarge, will need to find ways to reduce energy consumption to maintain operating costs. Many of the methods to reduce energy consumption are not overly burdensome as demonstrated at the Winnipeg Cement Terminal. By committing to be the world leader in sustainable building materials and solutions through the net-zero pledge, Lafarge holds sustainability at the core of its identity. Transitioning to the green economy may happen over small incremental changes that will have positively benefit future generations in a net-zero world.
