Africa Paint Manufacturers Strive to Reduce Energy Use, Gas Emissions

Africa continues to grapple with substantial energy shortages due to low levels of investment in power generation and distribution, a trend that has pushed manufacturing operations such as production of paints and coatings into introducing measures to reduce energy consumption at their industrial plants hence releasing the surplus to other users as well as cut down on overall operational costs.

The drive to reduce energy consumption, increase plant efficiency and minimize greenhouse gases continues to shape energy policies of many chemical manufacturing companies that are now embracing use of sustainable production processes and deploying energy saving equipment to optimize power consumption to achieve output targets at a low cost.

Africa’s paints and coatings market has attracted leading global companies that have embraced sustainable energy-use policies that are transforming their manufacturing processes such as in the production of paint ingredients as well as use of technology solutions that require low power consumption.

In South Africa, where power shortages have significantly limited economic growth, reducing it by 3% in 2021, paint manufacturers, including those that are engaged in production of other products such as pulp and paper, have innovated systems that use less energy but achieving the twin benefits of low operational costs and reduced carbon emissions.

There are an estimated 280-300 paint manufacturers in South Africa with the 10 largest companies producing nearly 70% of the country’s paint. Five of the 10 prominent paint makers are internationally owned and controls up to 80% of the country paints and coatings market share.

For example, Germany-based Beckers Group, which operates in South Africa as Beckers Industrial Coatings, says across its global operations, “energy intensity measured as energy used per ton of coatings produced is one of our pivotal environmental key performance indicators (KPIs).”

“Since we started measuring our energy use, we have shown a consistent increase in the fraction of renewable energy consumption from the total energy we use,” the company says in its 2021 sustainability report.

“We aim to further advance this trend in the coming years, continuing the transition to renewable energy across our business, especially with renewable electricity,” the report added.

In yet another previous report by South Africa’s Rhodes University Environmental Learning Research Centre, on behalf of the Chemical Industries Education & Training Authority (CHIETA) it was observed that “energy use is one of the most significant contributors to the environmental impact of both the manufacture and application of paint.”

The report cited the example of AkzoNobel that previously reported on-site energy use contributes approximately 15% to its total carbon footprint, while Jotun Paints South Africa estimated the cost of purchasing energy for manufacturing paints to be 75% to their total carbon footprint.

Utilization of Titanium dioxide’s pigment, a fine white powder used in paints to maximize whiteness and opacity, can exacerbate energy use levels due to its propensity to consume large amounts of energy during mining and extraction according to the report.

“Therefore, the reduction of energy-use through more efficient practices and technologies, and the sourcing of renewable energy is important for the industry,” the report said.

South Africa’s automotive industry remains the largest manufacturing sector in the country contributing nearly 4.6% to the economy in 2020. The sector attracts substantial foreign direct investments, with the seven leading OEMs investing a record ZAR9.2 billion (US$519 million) in 2020, while the component sector invested ZAR2.4 billion (US$136 million) in the same year. It is no surprising, therefore, South Africa’s automotive paints account for one of the highest energy consuming components of the country’s paints and coatings making processes.

“Most energy is used to heat and cool the car body during the paint application process,” the CHIETA report said.

The report suggests that since “painting process is such a significant contributor to the environmental impact associated with car manufacture, it is recommended that a future study explore in more depth the types of innovations, and associated skill required, to achieve a reduction in energy use during the paint application process.”

Meanwhile, U.S.-based specialty chemicals company, Buckman, has been utilizing an energy-saving technology at its South Africa manufacturing plant with substantial success in the reduction of energy consumption in a country where poor management and corruption at the State-owned power company, Eskom, has led to power cuts from the national grid that had by July 2022 reached 2,521 gigawatt hours of electricity.

Buckman, which conducts business in more than 90 countries, has had a 10-year partnership with South Africa-based energy equipment and solutions provider, Energy Drive, which has been credited for the reduction in electricity usage and water consumption at Buckman’s Hammarsdale manufacturing plant in South Africa.

“Together, the two saw an opportunity to monitor Buckman’s primary cooling tower to help the company achieve sustainable environmental benefits,” Buckman said in May 2022 statement.

Energy Drive had previously supplied Buckman’s Hammarsdale plant with an energy saving solution for the cooling tower system.

The energy-saving solution was installed on the four motors of the cooling tower system with sensors providing variable frequency drives with the information necessary to regulate the speed of the motors depending on the temperature required.

“When the system reaches the desired temperature, the pumps and fans slow to the optimal speed to ensure that energy is not wasted,” Buckman added.

The company’s Plant Manager at Hammarsdale, Mukesh Ramatar said “the low monthly service charge is completely offset by the energy savings we gain from the variable speed drives.”

Buckman said it has surpassed the “milestone 4 million kWh in energy saved which equates to 4.16 million kg of CO2 eliminated, 5.3 million litres of water saved and 2.24 million kg of coal and ash not used or generated.”

“One of the best things about variable speed drives is that they could be installed across all cooling tower systems and chiller systems globally, which could exponentially impact our energy savings and sustainability efforts,” said Ramatar.

Buckman has set a goal of 15% reduction in emissions by 2025 driven by a global operation sustainability team and regional sustainability teams at each manufacturing plant to collaborate and leverage best practices for actions to meet the target.

In a related development, AkzoNobel is one of the international companies that has made a commitment to reduce energy use by 30% over the next eight years.

AkzoNobel, which recently reached an agreement to acquire the African paints and coatings activities of Kansai Paint Africa, has also set as its goal achieving 100% use of renewable electricity, and moving towards a zero-waste company by 2030.

Furthermore, PPG, another specialty chemical player in South Africa through its fully integrated member Prominent Paints, says it has been continuously working “to design and manufacture products that help customers and consumers confidently choose products that reduce their environmental footprints and improve energy efficiency.”

PPG has as its long-term global energy goals to reduce energy consumption intensity 15% and increase by 25% the share of renewable energy in the company’s total energy use mix exclusive of greenhouse gas reductions by 2025.

However, PPG says a review of its global operations indicate the “vast majority of our coatings are produced at ambient temperatures and pressures, the production processes are not energy intensive.”

Although not specific to South Africa or the African market in particular, PPG said it has identified the milling step as the most energy intensive with the company affirming its commitment to “making this step more energy efficient.”

“We are also shortening cycle times and making other changes to reduce the energy required to manufacture our resins, which we typically produce in reactors that may require heating or cooling,” PPG said.

In 2021, PPG said it “is focused on reducing the environmental impact of our operations in part by reducing our energy consumption to minimize our greenhouse gas emissions, reducing costs, increasing renewable energy sourcing and maximizing resource efficiencies.”