Deepak Fertilisers and Petrochemicals initiates clean development mechanism project to address global warming

Deepak Fertilisers and Petrochemicals Corporation Limited (DFPCL) has launched a 'clean development mechanism project' at its manufacturing plant in Taloja.

The project will address the widespread concern on global warming, by reducing the green house gas (GHG) emission through the clean development mechanism (CDM), which forms part of the Kyoto Protocol. The project will be implemented within six months.

The DFPCL manufacturing unit at Taloja has three nitric acid plants. The process of nitric acid manufacture produces unwanted side reactions, some of them entailing the formation of small quantities of nitrous oxide (N2O), which get released into the atmosphere. Though, the nitrous oxide emission has no negative environmental effects locally, it is a potent green house gas. By implementing this project, DFPCL will continue its endeavour towards adopting cleaner technologies for environmental protection.

The abatement catalyst for nitrous oxide will be taken on lease from a European Supplier. The N2O abatement catalyst, which has been developed by Johnson Matthey plc (UK), has proved to reduce nitrous oxide by up to 90 per cent. The reduction of nitrous oxide (green house gas) is entitled to carbon credits issued by the United Nations' secretariat for climate change. These certified emission reductions (CER) could subsequently be traded in the world carbon markets.

The market of carbon credits has already taken off in India and DFPCL will be a part of this global market, which grew at 80 per cent approximately last year.

As per the agreement, the catalyst will be returned to the supplier for recovery and re-circulation of the active constituents once it reaches its useful life. In this way the project will not introduce any new solid waste or any environmental contaminant, nor will it materially change the existing process of nitric acid manufacture.

DFPCL plans to use the revenue earned from the CER trading for organic expansion, and also for supporting the activities of the Ishanya Foundation which actively works on various 'social responsibility' initiatives in the villages around Taloja, focusing on women empowerment, education and health. All terms of the CDM protocol applied by the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change, will be undertaken and a 'project design document' (PDD), which is essentially a project checklist will be validated.