'Waste-to-Energy' is one of the biggest energy transition opportunities immediately available. While some waste heat recovery applications are well established and considered as part of the industry's initial planning, new possibilities are emerging in this segment due to various environmental determinants. Waste to energy solutions generate clean, reliable energy from a renewable fuel source, thus reducing dependence on fossil fuels, the combustion of which is a major contributor to GHG emissions. A USD 807 million business with its headquarters in Pune, India, Thermax is an energy and environment solutions provider focusing on energy transition from conventional to sustainable and expanding the green portfolio in the space of clean air, clean energy and clean water.
With deep domain expertise in the energy and environment segments, Thermax has been offering energy-efficient and environment-friendly solutions for more than five decades. As an industry leader in waste to energy, it provides highly customised solutions that are relevant and viable for customers. Some of their home-grown solutions include non-recyclable solid waste fired boilers, multi-fuel fired boilers, and applications related to waste heat recovery for cooling and heating. Additionally, the firm has partnered with a recognised European technology provider for municipal solid waste fired boilers.
Thermax is also looking at opportunities to convert difficult to digest stubble into a carbon-neutral fuel through its newest venture in the bio-CNG space. The firm is setting-up a pilot plant in the northern part of the country to generate bio-CNG. The model will not only provide clean fuel for transportation, household cooking, and more, but also facilitate circularity by providing farmers with additional income, creating jobs for locals, optimising resources, and reducing carbon footprint. Furthermore, Thermax is also leveraging existing biomass-based build-own-operate business model for establishing waste to energy projects where different types of waste can be utilised.
Ashish Bhandari, Managing Director & CEO, Thermax, recently engaged in a one-on-one interaction with Industry Outlook magazine. Let’s hear from him.
What are the major problems and expectations that customers have from the players of this segment? How do you strategise to meet those?
In the waste to energy segment, the main problems are associated with the value chain, such as collection, development of transfer stations, transportation, and cleaning. There are also issues concerning the types of wastes available and their processing, such as varying gross calorific values, moisture contents, and more. These problems make it difficult for solution providers and customers to have a one-size-fits-all approach.
Financial institutions and customers need proven waste to energy technologies that can mitigate these challenges, meet local demands and overcome the practical difficulties of users.
Our experience in providing indigenised solutions coupled with the strategic technology tie-up with HZI Steinmüller is an example of bringing state-of-the-art technology to the country for managing municipal solid waste. Users are looking at multi-waste options like biofuels, agriculture waste, non-recyclable solid waste, refuse derived fuel to have higher input flexibility while at the same time maintaining economic viability and environmental sustainability.
Our recently launched FLEXISOURCE is one such solution that exemplifies our ability to deliver highly flexible, custom-made solutions.
Having sold 1200+ units of waste heat and biomass/ waste fired boilers, we can cater to evolving needs and offer a comprehensive adaptive package to handle the energy transition.
Tell us about the team of Thermax. How is your combined experience helping the firm to grow?
Thermax has some of the most experienced professionals in the field of waste to energy in India who have spent significant time developing, implementing and upgrading waste to energy systems. With technical know-how and qualified teams, we have conducted combustion trials on more than 100 different fuels and have a large database of the results. We have conducted trials on municipal wastes from more than 25 cities in India to understand the variation.
The collective strength of people and the database, coupled with our test setup and R&D efforts, help us to offer practical solutions to our customers.
What are the key specifications of the range of services delivered by the firm? Highlight your USP.
Thermax Group offers an array of services to Indian and international industrial users. We provide energy and environment equipment; and, thus, services allied to these segments. To list a few, we offer operations and maintenance support for all utilities, renovation and modernisation services for old equipment, outsourced utility delivery services on BOOT (opex) model, energy management services, and digital services for industrial assets through EDGE Live.
Thermax's ability to be a trusted partner to customers in managing their end-to-end utilities - from concept to commissioning and after sales is the biggest USP.
Please elaborate, what are the key points that differentiate your company from other players in this segment?
Thermax is uniquely positioned as one of the few players who understand the end-to-end utility offering space for commercial and industrial segments in India. Over the last 50 years, we have worked with thousands of customers across the country and globally in multiple industries, solving their simple and complex energy needs and challenges. Years of experience, cumulative domain knowledge, and trusted partnerships speak volumes about our work in this field. Thermax's ability to provide energy solutions that are clean, accessible, affordable, sustainable, and reliable makes us a preferred energy transition partner for industries looking to decarbonise.
How has been the journey of the company since its inception? Walk us through the growth it has received in terms of clients and geographical expansions.
Incorporated in 1966, Thermax Group is an US$ 807 million company headquartered in Pune, India. It has grown into a leading conglomerate in the energy and environment space, strategically spreading its operations to markets worldwide, catering to a gamut of industries. Spanning 90+ countries, the company offers integrated solutions in heating, cooling, power generation, water treatment and recycle, air pollution control, and chemicals with a focus on ensuring clean air, clean energy, and clean water.
The company has a robust R&D set-up, involved in technology, development and adaptation of various applications. Over the years, Thermax has formed technology partnerships with global majors, including Babcock & Wilcox, USA (boilers), Balcke-Duerr GMBH, Germany (dry electrostatic precipitators, regenerative air gas heaters and pulse jet bag filters), Lambion Energy Solutions, Germany (grate technologies) and Marsulex Environment Technologies, USA (wet and semi-dry flue gas desulphurisation technology), Power Roll (developing unique, low-cost and lightweight, flexible solar films), HZI Steinmüller (municipal solid waste fired waste to energy boilers), ExactSpace Technologies (AI solutions to decarbonise industrial plants and eliminate unplanned failures) and Everenviro Resource Management (to set-up bio-CNG turnkey projects).
It has undertaken strategic acquisitions – Danstoker A/S in Denmark (oil/gas and biomass- fired boilers), Weiss Sp. z.o.o. in Poland (boilers and waste heat recovery systems), and Rifox-Hans Richter Spezialarmaturen in Germany (steam accessories).
Today, Thermax has a sales and service network spread over Asia, South East Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe and the Americas. It operates globally through 34 international offices and 14 manufacturing facilities – 10 of which are in India and four overseas. The group consists of 10 wholly-owned domestic (Indian) subsidiaries and 22 wholly-owned overseas subsidiaries.
Where do you see this market in the near future? What is the future roadmap for your company?
India has made a long-term goal of reaching net zero by 2070 while, at the same time, the country's energy demand is growing at 8-10 percent annually. Getting to this goal without compromising energy usage will require India to switch to alternative energy sources and energy efficiency solutions. Harnessing energy from waste, renewable sources, converting fossil fuel into carbon-neutral fuel, and retrofitting & upgrading existing energy infrastructure are some of the ways to enable the country's energy and climate commitment goals, thus making it lucrative.
At Thermax, we are committed to creating a better tomorrow and thus driven by our brand promise of 'Conserving resources, Preserving the Future'. And to achieve this, we are developing and deploying new-age technologies that can help customers transition to sustainable alternatives for meeting their utility needs and net zero commitments. We are investing in research & development and partnering with global majors for cutting-edge technologies in waste to energy, agro-based hybrid multi fuel combustion, new waste heat recovery applications, electric boilers, coal gasification, green hydrogen, energy storage, thin film solar and other renewable areas.
As a partner to customers in their energy transition journey, Thermax helps bridge the gap between energy availability and energy sustainability
We have been taking conscious efforts to strengthen existing and develop new capabilities towards addressing the decarbonisation demands. We have set up a dedicated 'new energy portfolio' and subsidiaries, such as First Energy (FEPL), Thermax Onsite Energy Solutions (TOESL) and Thermax Bioenergy Solutions (TBSPL), to provide green and sustainable solutions to the commercial and industrial segments.
Through FEPL, we provide opex and capex renewable energy solutions for decentralised RE-power. While through TBSPL, we are setting up a pilot plant to generate bio-CNG to reduce the country's dependence on imported oil/gas. We also have indigenised innovative technologies such as converting high ash India coal to chemicals which is in the advanced stages of discussion with government agencies for scale-up; besides exploring possibilities for developing green hydrogen.
We also offer Thermax Edge Live - an integrated enterprise asset performance enhancement solution that connects all our equipment digitally. Through this service offering, customers can achieve enhanced business outcomes such as improved plant performance, enhanced uptime and knowledge management.
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