Vedanta Aluminium scores a hattrick at SEEM Awards

6th August 2021

  • Vedanta’s Power Plants at Jharsuguda have also bagged awards at the Thermal Power Plant Operation & Maintenance Awards 2021

New Delhi, 6th August 2021: Vedanta Aluminium Business, India’s largest producer of the aluminium and value-added products, has bagged three ‘Gold Awards’ at the SEEM National Energy Management Awards (SNEMA) 2020 for excellence in energy management at its Aluminium Smelters I & II and 1215 MW Captive Power Plant at Jharsuguda, Odisha. An Aluminium Smelter is a plant where aluminium oxide or alumina undergoes electrolytic reduction to produce pure aluminium. Vedanta Jharsuguda’s 1215 MW Captive Power Plant and 2400 MW Thermal Power Plant have also won at the Thermal Power Plant Operation & Maintenance Conference and Awards 2021 for overall operational excellence.

Speaking about Vedanta’s energy stewardship, Mr. Rahul Sharma, Dy. CEO – Vedanta Aluminium Business, said, “As India’s largest producer of aluminium, a 100% recyclable metal, we are cognizant of our responsibilities towards sustainable development and climate action. We are working towards it through a three-pronged strategy of ensuring judicious resource usage, energy-efficient operations, and renewable energy sourcing. We have adopted global best-practises in energy and resource management, and deployed cutting-edge solutions to reduce our carbon footprint. We are also exploring viable options of renewable energy sourcing for producing aluminium, the green metal.”

Energy management is at the heart of Vedanta Aluminium’s climate action roadmap, and finds realization through dedicated efforts towards attaining highest operational efficiency of assets and processes. In agreement with the recommendations made by the Task Force on Climate related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and guided by the Vedanta Group’s Carbon Forum, Vedanta Aluminium is working towards executing its carbon management practises as per the TCFD Framework. These include impactful initiatives for optimisation of specific energy consumption in production processes and a long-term focus on migrating to low carbon energy mix.

Appreciating Vedanta Aluminium’s focus on energy management, Mr. Krishnakumar Ramanathan, Vice President and Country Business Head – Large Drives Applications, Siemens Limited, adds, “Siemens has been associated with Vedanta Aluminium for integrated plant maintenance of its smelter units at Jharsuguda, Odisha, for well over a decade. With its engineering and domain expertise, the Siemens team has been contributing to Vedanta’s efforts toward reducing energy consumption in all areas of operations. We are happy to be a value-added service provider to Vedanta, playing a crucial part in this successful journey of energy optimization for sustainable and world-class smelter operations.”

Vedanta’s Alumina Refinery, Aluminium Smelters and Power Plants have been forerunners in the realm of energy management, among the Indian manufacturing sectors. Few notable initiatives and highlights:

  • Vedanta Aluminium was India’s largest green power purchaser in Q1FY22, having procured 354 million units of solar and non-solar renewable energy for its aluminium smelter at Jharsuguda.
  • Vedanta Aluminium has significantly reduced its GHG emission intensity by 21% with 2012 as baseline, and aims to reduce it by 24% in 2025 over the same baseline.
  • Reduction in indirect energy consumption of 2 million Giga Joules (GJ) between FY20 and FY21 at Vedanta Aluminium’s captive assets.
  • Climate action initiatives across all Business Units have resulted in energy conservation of 1.4 million GJ and GHG savings of 0.32 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e) in FY 20-21.
  • Vedanta’s aluminium smelter at Jharsuguda is India’s first, and the world’s third smelter to deploy Digital Smelter Solution, which uses digital twin technology, predictive and prescriptive analytics to enhance energy efficiency.
  • The Jharsuguda smelter is also the first aluminium smelter in Asia to receive ISO 50001 certificate for Energy Management System since 2013.
  • Bharat Aluminium Company (BALCO), Vedanta’s subsidiary at Chhattisgarh, achieved lowest specific power consumption in its Potline-I in 2020, setting a benchmark among Aluminium Smelters in India and the Gulf countries. A potline is a long building, or collection of buildings, located in a smelter and contains a series of ‘pots’, or large. electrolytic cells, in which aluminium smelting is carried out.
  • Vedanta’s ‘Carbon Forum’ is actively working on guiding implementation of the company’s carbon mitigation approach.

Vedanta Aluminium Business in Odisha & Chhattisgarh, a division of Vedanta Limited, is India’s largest manufacturer of aluminium, producing half of India’s aluminium i.e. 1.96 million tonnes in FY21. It is a leader in value-added aluminium products that find critical applications in core industries. With its world-class Aluminium Smelters, Alumina Refinery and Power Plants in India, the company fulfils its mission of spurring emerging applications of aluminium as the ‘Metal of the Future’ for a greener tomorrow.

About Vedanta Limited:

Vedanta Limited, a subsidiary of Vedanta Resources Limited, is one of the world’s leading Oil & Gas and Metals company with significant operations in Oil & Gas, Zinc, Lead, Silver, Copper, Iron Ore, Steel, and Aluminium & Power across India, South Africa and Namibia. For two decades, Vedanta has been contributing significantly to nation building. Governance and sustainable development are at the core of Vedanta's strategy, with a strong focus on health, safety, and environment. Vedanta has put in place a comprehensive framework to be the ESG leader in the natural resources sector. Vedanta is committed to reducing carbon emissions to zero by 2050 or sooner and has pledged $5 billion over the next 10 years to accelerate the transition to net zero operations. Giving back is in the DNA of Vedanta, which is focused on enhancing the lives of local communities. The company’s flagship social impact program, Nand Ghars, have been set up as model anganwadis focused on eradicating child malnutrition, providing education, healthcare, and empowering women with skill development. Under the aegis of the Anil Agarwal Foundation, the umbrella entity for Vedanta’s social initiatives, the Vedanta group has pledged Rs 5000 crore over the next five years on social impact programmes with a thrust on nutrition, women & child development, healthcare, animal welfare, and grass-root level sports. Vedanta and the group companies have been featured in Dow Jones Sustainability Index, and was conferred Frost & Sullivan Sustainability Awards 2020, Golden Peacock Award for excellence in Corporate Governance 2022 and certified as a Great Place to Work 2022. Vedanta Limited is listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange.

For more information, please visit www.vedantalimited.com

About Vedanta Aluminium Business:

Vedanta Aluminium, a business of Vedanta Limited, is India’s largest producer of aluminium, manufacturing more than half of India’s aluminium i.e., 2.29 million tonnes in FY23. It is a leader in value-added aluminium products that find critical applications in core industries. Vedanta Aluminium ranks 1st in the S&P Global Corporate Sustainability Assessment 2023 world rankings for the aluminium industry, a reflection of its leading sustainable development practices. With its world-class aluminium smelters, alumina refinery and power plants in India, the company fulfils its mission of spurring emerging applications of aluminium as the ‘Metal of the Future’ for a greener tomorrow.

For more information, please log on to www.vedantaaluminium.com

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