Countries around the world are preparing to mark Earth Hour on March 26, 2022, to collectively raise awareness in support of addressing climate change. Taking actions to enhance energy efficiency is an ongoing mission at Tenaris. Initiatives big and small form part of the company’s medium-term targets to cut its emissions and aims to deepen and broaden an environmental conscious and energy-saving culture across the company. Tenaris Energy Manager, Matteo Castellani, leads the effort to find savings across the company’s global industrial footprint to effect sustainable change.
Tell us about Tenaris’ strategy to decarbonize
Energy efficiency is a key aspect of our strategy towards decarbonization. We intend to reach a 30% intensity reduction target in CO₂ tn/tn steel by 2030 by increasing the use of scrap and clean electricity from renewable energies, together with the adoption of green hydrogen and carbon capture utilization and storage technologies. Our energy efficiency plan consists of several small projects as well. It is not only about buying more efficient equipment and turning off the lights, but also about detecting energy waste that can be reused. We are constantly rethinking our processes and the way we do things to avoid unnecessary operations, and finally, consumption.
What current energy efficiency projects does Tenaris have ongoing?
Most of our projects are about upgrading our facilities to make them more efficient and less energy-consuming. We have invested $6million USD in improving lighting, integrating better performing air compressors, pumps, fans, and metering. We also have larger scale projects in the works such as the recently announced construction of a wind farm in Buenos Aires, Argentina. This is a big advancement for Tenaris in developing a renewable energy source that will provide about half of the electricity requirement of the plant and contribute to reducing CO2. We also have the expansion of the rolling mill in Dalmine, Italy. This project streamlines the manufacturing of larger diameter pipe, consolidating its production to a single rolling mill versus two, which leads to greater efficiencies in the consumption of natural gas and electricity, less use of water, and reduced air emissions, among other savings related to the entire manufacturing process and movement of the material.
What would you suggest any of us can do at home or at work to improve energy efficiency?
These are always the same tips, but they work: switch off the lights, regulate the temperature in a more efficient way when heating and cooling houses or offices, and take care of hot water, which is very expensive from the environmental point of view because it consumes more energy when heating, and it also takes longer to reach the optimum temperature. Last but not least, we need to keep talking about this every day.
To read more about Tenaris’s decarbonization strategy, click here.
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