Guidelines on

Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel

in Various Industries

Central Public Health and Environmental Engineering Organisation (CPHEEO)

Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs

www. [Link]
September 2018
 Guidelines on
Usage of Refuse
Derived Fuel in
Various Industries

Central Public Health and Environmental Engineering Organisation (CPHEEO)

Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs

www. [Link]
September 2018
 i

Guidelines on Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel in Various Industries

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Guidelines on Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel in Various Industries

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Guidelines on Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel in Various Industries

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Guidelines on Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel in Various Industries

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Guidelines on Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel in Various Industries

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Executive Summary
To achieve the objectives of a clean India under not recyclable such as soiled paper, soiled cloth,
Swachh Bharat Mission by October 2019 and to ensure contaminated plastics, multi-layer, packaging materials,
the compliance of Solid Waste Management (SWM) other packaging materials, pieces of leather, rubber,
Rules 2016, several initiatives have been taken by tyre, polystyrene (thermocol), wood etc. has remained
the Government to ensure scientific processing and a challenge and these fractions unwantedly ends
disposal of municipal solid waste (MSW). However, up at landfill sites. These fractions can be processed
MSW management continues to be a challenge to and converted to refuse derived fuel (RDF), which
Urban Local Bodies (ULB), not only because of their carries significant calorific value, and can be utilised as
limited resources and technical capabilities, but also alternative fuel in various industries in line with the
because of the characteristics of Indian Waste and old principle of waste to wealth.
set practices of dumping mixed waste.
To promote the usage of MSW based RDF, an Expert
Within MSW management, processing of several Committee was constituted by the Ministry of Housing
fractions that are combustible in nature but are and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) in October 2017. The overall

Figure 1. 100 km buffer from cement industries and Functional Waste to Compost, Waste to Energy
and RDF plants location in India

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Figure 2. Challenges for RDF Usage in Cement Plants

objective was to come out with guidelines and relevant fuel and waste to energy plants based on solid waste
recommendations on utilisation of RDF in various state that “All industrial units using fuel and located
industries inline with the objectives of Swachh Bharat within one hundred km from a solid waste based
Mission. refused derived fuel plant shall make arrangements
The guideline provides an insight into various aspects within six months from the date of notification
covering existing policy framework, comparative of these rules to replace at least five percent of
analysis of potential use in different industries, global their fuel requirement by refused derived fuel so
scenarios and Indian best practices. It is found that a produced.”
sound policy framework exists for RDF as SWM Rules
2016 recommends the following: The guideline includes the estimated quantity of
MSW based RDF and also mapped the cement plants
i. Clause 15(v)b under Duties and responsibilities of and MSW processing facilities across the country to
local authorities and village Panchayats of census facilitate faster implementation between ULB and
towns and urban agglomerates, it is mentioned that Cement industry.
“waste to energy processes including refused derived
fuel for combustible fraction of waste or supply The challenges, opportunities and required support
as feedstock to solid waste-based power plants or for private sector engagement especially from waste
cement kilns” management and cement industry have also been
taken into account through extensive stakeholder
ii. Clause 21: Criteria for waste to energy process - (1) engagements as presented in figure 2 below.
Non-recyclable waste having calorific value of 1500
Kcal/kg or more shall not be disposed off on landfills The waste management hierarchy and resource
and shall only be utilised for generating energy recovery principles, the safeguards to ensure recycling
either through refuse derived fuel or by giving away and positive role of the informal waste workers
as feed stock for preparing refuse derived fuel. (2) are covered by defining the processes, roles and
High calorific waste shall be used for co-processing in responsibilities.
cement or thermal power plants.
iii. Clause 18: Duties of the industrial units located To make a viable business model, the financial
within one hundred km from the refused derived needs, gaps and instruments for fiscal incentives are

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S. Parameters SCF RDF - Grade III RDF - Grade II RDF -Grade I

No
1. Intended Use$ Input material for the For co-processing For direct co- For direct co-
Waste to Energy plant directly or after processing in processing in
or RDF pre-processing processing with other cement kiln cement kiln
facility waste materials in
cement kiln

Grade III Grade II Grade I

2 Size Anything above 400mm <50 mm or < 20 mm depending upon use in ILC or SLC,
has to be mutually respectively
agreed between
Urban Local Body/ SCF
Supplier and Cement
Plants.

3 Ash – maximum <20 %# <15 % <10 % <10 %

permissible

4 Moisture – maximum <35 % < 20% <15 % <10%

permissible

5 Chlorine –maximum < 1.0 % # < 1.0 % < 0.7 < 0.5
permissible

6 Sulphur – maximum <1.5 % # <1.5 %

permissible

7 * Net Calorific Value > 1500 KCal/kg net >3000 KCal/kg net >3750 KCal/kg net > 4500 KCal/kg
(NCV) – in Kcal/kg net
(Average figure of every
individual consignment)

8 Any other parameter SCF – any offensive RDF – any offensive RDF – any offensive RDF – any
odour to be controlled. odour to be odour to be offensive odour to
** controlled. controlled. be controlled.

Note: $ It is up to the ULB, Cement and other industries to mutually decide which standard of RDF need to be produced.
# If the blending process is done in cement plants, the deviations in recommitted limit for ash, chlorine and sulphur content can be
mutually agreed between urban local body /SCF Supplier and cement plants.
* band width of variations acceptable in NCV can be mutually decided between RDF manufacturer and cement plants.
** Since odour is still largely a matter of perception and there is no satisfactory equipment to measure different types of odour, no
quantitative figure has been given.

defined. To define the roles and responsibilities of key Unit SCF RDF RDF RDF Industrial Petcoke
stakeholders, model tender documents along with long Grade Grade Grade Coal
III II I
term tripartite agreement between urban local bodies,
segregated combustible fractions (SCF) / RDF producer Kcal/Kg 7900-
1500 3000 3750 4500 3000-4200
8300
and cement plants have been prepared and uploaded
Minimum
on the Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban) website i.e. Rs./Tonne
[Link]. (assumed @
600 1200 1500 1800
Rs. 0.4 per
1000 Kcal/
The guidelines present the following standards for kg)
4500 9000
SCF and RDF for utilisation in waste to energy plants Maximum
Rs./Tonne
and cement industry duly confirmed by Cement (assumed @
Manufacturing Association. 1200 2400 3000 3600
Rs. 0.8 per
1000 Kcal/
kg)

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For initiating the RDF usage in cement industry, the The above-mentioned prices may prove to be indicative
Committee Members agreed that different RDF types over the time and market forces will govern the long-
have different calorific values, and so the cost of each term commercial price determination. The mentioned
combustible fraction have to be expressed in INR price would be for the <50 mm size material that is
per 1000 Kcal/kg to be comparable. The commercial suitable for In Line Calciner (ILC). For Separate Line
acceptability of properly processed RDF was agreed at Calciner (SLC), the same will be cheaper and can get
Rs. 0.4 per 1000 Kcal/kg by the members with reference negotiated between the RDF operator & the Cement
to the specifications as defined in the guidelines. It is plant. Since nature, quality and acceptability of SCF
also suggested that RDF prices be dynamic and linked by cement plants will be very much dependent upon
with the cost of coal. the segregation and quality control at the ULB level
and its utilization feasibility also will be plant specific,
the commercial terms related to transaction of SCF
In overall, once RDF of the quality/specifications is
between cement plant and ULBs can be negotiated
made available, on a dependable basis, within the
between them on a case to case basis. However, the
transport influence zone of 400 km of a cement plant,
initial transportation cost up to 100 km will have to be
market forces would prevail upon where the ULB, the
borne by the Cement Plant concerned and beyond 100
RDF processors and cement plants would negotiate an
km up to 400 km will be borne by concerned ULB.
agreeable cost of RDF considering various factors.
To further increase the utilisation of MSW-based RDF,
To begin with, the suggestive maximum and minimum key recommendations of expert committee along
prices of the respective grades of RDF as worked out for with the responsibilities of different stakeholders are
guidance is presented below: summarised below for compliance at their end:

S. Recommendations Responsibility
No
1 Modification in SWM Rules 2016 MoEF&CC

Existing Clause in section “Duties of the industrial units located within one hundred km from
the RDF and Waste to Energy plants based on solid waste”

All industrial units using fuel and located within 100 km from a solid waste-based RDF plant shall
make arrangements within six months from the date of notification of these rules to replace at
least 5 % of their fuel requirement by RDF so produced.

Modification in Clause in section

“Duties of the industrial units especially Cement Plants and Waste to Energy Plants for usage of
Segregated Combustible Fractions (SCF) and/or RDF”

“The cement plants located within 400 km from a solid waste-based RDF plant shall make
necessary arrangements to utilise RDF in the following phase wise manner at price fixed by State
Government: -

i. Replace at least 6% of fuel intake, within one year from the date of amendment of these rules
(equivalent calorific value/Thermal Substitution Rate) by Municipal Solid Waste based SCF
and/or RDF, subject to the availability of RDF.

ii. Replace at least 10% of fuel intake within two years from the date of amendment of these
rules (equivalent calorific value/Thermal Substitution Rate) by Municipal Solid Waste based
SCF and/or RDF, subject to the availability of RDF.

iii. Replace at least 15% of its fuel intake within three years from the date of amendment of
these rules (equivalent calorific value/Thermal Substitution Rate) by Municipal Solid Waste
based SCF and/or RDF, subject to the availability of RDF.”

The transport cost for SCF/RDF up to 100 km from the cement plant shall be borne by cement
plant, however, beyond 100 km cement plant can transport at its own cost or by ULBs as
mutually agreed upon by the parties.

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2 To ensure processing of segregated combustible fractions (SCF) in existing and proposed MoHUA through
MSW plants, ULB shall manage necessary investment either by themselves or through private State Urban
company selected through a competitive bidding process on agreed terms and conditions. The Development
Swachh Bharat Mission funds may also be utilised in setting up such plants as VGF/ Grant. Departments/ ULBs
3 Model Tender Documents and tripartite agreement between urban local bodies, SCF/ RDF ULBs to lead
manufacturer and Cement plants are placed in Annexure I for guidance and uploaded on the conclusion
Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban) website. of agreement
with, SCF/ RDF
manufacturer and
Cement plants.
4 To ensure the financial viability of usage of MSW based SCF and RDF, the following guiding State Urban
principles are suggested: Development
Department, ULB
(i) S CF/RDF shall be lifted by Cement Plant /Waste to Energy plant on the terms and conditions and Cement Plants
mutually agreed by the parties on the lines of model agreements.

(ii) The Cement Plant will pay for SCF/ RDF to ULB at mutually agreed Rates on the basis of
the caloric value of RDF/ SCF and other quality factors on the lines or cost per 1000 Kcal/kg
indicated in the guidelines.
5 To reduce the dependence on cement plants, MoHUA may consider supporting applied MoHUA through
Research and Development for conversion of RDF to liquid/solid/ gas fuel or other innovative SBM or may contact
options with potential replication in the form of 2-3 pilot plants. If successful, this will open up Department
additional avenues for RDF utilisation. of Science and
Technology.
6 To provide an impetus for AFR/RDF standardisation mechanism and its utilization, collaborative Ministry of
measures on research and development to be initiated by all cement manufacturers, National Commerce &
Council for Cement and Building Materials (NCBM), Department of Industrial Policy & Industry and
Promotion (DIPP). Ministry of Heavy
Industries and Public
Enterprises
7 Utilization of the RDF is “ensuring environmental sustainability” through reduction in Ministry of Heavy
landfill quantum and greenhouse gases and is aligned with sub-clause (vi) Schedule VII of The Industries & Public
Companies Act, 2013. To encourage the use of RDF, the expenses so incurred for transportation Enterprises/ DIPP
of RDF, beyond 100 km distance and to be borne by industries or ULBs as mutually agreed, as
mentioned under Sl. No. 1 above, may be booked by industries under their Corporate Social
Responsibility (CSR) commitment, as per Section 135 of the Companies Act, 2013.

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Contents
Message i
Preface iii
Foreword v
Acknowledgement vii
Executive Summary x
List of Figures xvii
List of Tables xviii
List of Annexures xix
List of Abbreviations xx

1. Introduction 1
1.1. Waste Generation 1
1.2. Challenges of Processing and Disposal 1
1.3. Challenges of Processing Combustible Fractions 2

2. Scope and Objective 4

PART A: RDF Standards 5

3. Co-Processing Solid Recovered Fuel (SRF) 6
3.1. Global Experiences of Co-processing of Solid Recovered Fuel 6
3.1.1. Germany 6
3.1.2. Poland 6
3.1.3. Austria 7
3.1.4. Japan 7
3.2. Regulatory mechanism on co-processing 8
3.3. RDF usage experience across Various Industries 8
3.3.1. Thermal Industry 9
3.3.2. Iron and Steel Industry 9
3.3.3. Brick kilns 10
3.3.4. Cement Industry 10
3.3.5. Waste-to-Energy (Incineration) 12
3.4. Comparative feasibility of RDF use in various industries 14

4. SWOT Analysis for RDF usage in India 15

4.1. Availability of RDF for co-processing 15
4.2. Enabling Policy Framework 15
4.3. Mapping of RDF availability across India 15
4.3.1. Waste Management Industry 15
4.3.2. Cement Industry 16
4.4. Identification of Challenges 17
4.5. Lack of Established Business Model 17
4.6. Lack of Financial Incentives 18
4.7. Capacity Gaps 18

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5. RDF Standards for Co-processing 20

5.1. Existing Global Standards 20
5.2. Existing guidelines in India 21
5.3. Need for Standards for RDF in India 21
5.4. Parameters to be standardised 22
5.5. RDF Standards 23

Part B: Preparation and Usage of RDF 24

6. RDF- Functional Elements 25
6.1. Constituents of Waste for RDF 25
6.2. Collection and Handling of waste for RDF 25
6.3. Storage 25
6.4. Transportation 26

7. RDF Preparation & Quality Check Mechanism 27

7.1. Steps for RDF Preparation 27
7.2. Steps for quality check of RDF at co-processing facility 28
7.3. Methodology 28
7.4. Concerned Standards 28
7.5. Testing Infrastructure 29

8. Role of Stakeholders 31
8.1. RDF Producers- ULBs & Private Operators 31
8.2. RDF Users– Cement plants and waste to energy plants 31
8.3. Regulators 33

Part C: Financial Analysis and Rollout Models 34

9. Financial Analysis and Funding Support 35
9.1 Comparison with Coal and Petcoke 35
9.2 Preparatory Requirements in Cement Plants for use of RDF 36
9.3 Pricing of RDF 36
9.4 Indicative Cost- Capital and Operation & Maintenance 39
9.5 Financing Gaps 40
9.6 Fiscal Incentives for Promoting Usage of RDF 40
9.7 Financing Instruments 41
9.7.1 Central Government Sources 41
9.7.2 State Government Sources 41
9.7.3 Urban Local Body Sources 41
9.7.4 Other Sources 41

10. Rollout models and bid parameters 42

10.1. Operationalization Models 42
10.1.1. Model 1: Standalone RDF unit for an ULB 42
10.1.2. Model 2: RDF unit for a cluster of Cities/Towns 43
10.1.3. Requirements for take-off by Cement Companies under
the standalone and cluster approach models 44
10.1.4. Model 3: Cement Industry Model 44
10.2. Bid Parameters 44

PART D: Conclusions and Recommendations 46

11. Conclusions and Recommendations 47

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List of Figures

Figure No. Title Page No.

Figure 1: 100 km buffer from cement industries and Functional Waste to Compost, Waste to Energy and x
RDF plants location in India
Figure 2: Challenges for RDF Usage in Cement Plants xi
Figure 3: Waste management hierarchy 2
Figure 4: Various fraction in mixed MSW 2
Figure 5: Thermal substitution by alternative fuels in the cement industry 6
Figure 6: Spatial distribution of 100 and 200 km buffer from cement industry, functional waste to energy, 16
waste to compost and RDF plant in India
Figure 7: Challenges for RDF Usage in Cement Plants 17
Figure 8: Comparison of Net Calorific Value across different standards 20
Figure 9: Comparison of moisture (in %) across different standards 20
Figure 10: Comparison of Sulphur and Chlorine across different standards. 20
Figure 11: Desirable characteristics of RDF for co-processing in cement kilns as per MSW Manual, 2016 21
Figure 12: Source segregation fractions mandated by SWM Rules, 2016 25
Figure 13: Flowchart of MSW to RDF plant to RDF co-processing in cement kilns 26
Figure 14: Schematic overview of RDF manufacturing process 27
Figure 15: Process block diagram for manufacturing RDF from SCF 31
Figure 16: Options for fuel feed points at cement kiln 32
Figure 17: Potential Cost and Revenue model for Urban Local Bodies 40

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List of Tables

Table No. Title Page No.

Table 1: SWM Rules 2016 on usage of RDF 8
Table 2: Challenges of using RDF as a fuel source in Thermal Power Plants 9
Table 3: Challenges of using RDF as a fuel in Iron and Steel industry 10
Table 4: List of Cement Plants with Approval for AFR 11
Table 5: Benefits of using RDF in Cement Industries 12
Table 6: Comparative Analysis of MSW based RDF usage 13
Table 7: List of Enabling Policy Framework for Co-processing 15
Table 8: Proposed Standards for SCF and RDF 23
Table 9: Standard components of RDF plant 27
Table 10: BIS Standards 28
Table 11: ASTM Standards 29
Table 12: BS EN British Standards 29
Table 13: BS EN Print Analysis Standards 29
Table 14: Laboratory Infrastructure Details 30
Table 15: Emission limits for cement kilns co-processing in India 32
Table 16: Comparison between Coal and RDF 35
Table 17: Indicative Capital and Operation and Maintenance Cost of RDF Plant of various sizes 37
Table 18: Tentative Capital Cost for setting up to 100 TPD plant 37
Table 19: Tentative Operation and Maintenance Cost for setting up to 100 TPD plant 38
Table 20: RDF transportation cost 39
Table 21: RDF transporting capacity of trucks 39
Table 22: Indicative Cost of Transportation based on low interest rate 39
Table 23: Types of RDF Plants and Retrofitting Requirements 42
Table 24: Financial Sustainability for Standalone/ Cluster Models- IRR Calculations 43

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List of Annexures

Annexure I: Model tripartite agreement for management of Segregated Combustible Fraction (SCF) and Refuse Derived
Fuel (RDF) from Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) through co-processing in Cement Plants
Annexure II: Emission norms for co-processing of waste / RDF in cement plants are notified by Ministry of Environment
Forest and Climate Change
Annexure III: List of operational and under construction waste to energy plant
Annexure IV: IRR Calculation for 100 TPD RDF Plant without Considering Revenue from Recyclables
Annexure V: IRR Calculation for 100 TPD RDF Plant With 10% Quantity of Recyclables
Annexure VI: IRR Calculation for 100 TPD RDF Plant With 20% Quantity of Recyclables
Annexure VII: IRR Calculation for 100 TPD RDF Plant With 30% Quantity of Recyclables
Annexure VIII: Business model of Cement Plant with 100 TPD co-processing platform
Annexure IX: IRR Calculation for Cement Plant with Co Processing Platform of 100 TPD RDF
Annexure X: List of Cement Plants with co-processing facility in India

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List of Abbreviations

AFR Alternative Fuels and Raw Materials

ASTM American Society for Testing and Materials
BIS Bureau of Indian Standards
CMA Cement Manufacturers Association
CPCB Central Pollution Control Board
CPHEEO Central Public Health and Environmental Engineering Organisation
CSI Cement Sustainability Initiative
ETP Effluent Treatment Plant
MNRE Ministry of New and Renewable Energy
MoHUA Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs
MSW Municipal Solid Waste
MTPA Million Tonnes Per Annum
NCV Net Calorific Value
PCC Pollution Control Committee
RDF Refuse Derived Fuel
SCF Segregated Combustible Fraction
SOP Standard Operating Procedures
SPCB State Pollution Control Boards
SWM Solid Waste Management
SWOT Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats
TPD Tonnes per day
SDF Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facility
TSR Thermal Substitution Rate
ULB Urban Local Bodies
WBCSD World Business Council for Sustainable Development

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1. Introduction

To achieve the objectives of a clean India under Management of such a huge amount of MSW in the
Swachh Bharat Mission by October 2019 and to ensure country has emerged as a severe problem not only
the compliance of Solid Waste Management (SWM) because of the environmental, hygienic and aesthetic
Rules, 2016, several initiatives are being taken by concerns but also because of the sheer quantity of
the Government to ensure scientific processing and waste generated every day that needs to be collected,
disposal of municipal solid waste (MSW). Various transported, treated and disposed. Enormous pressure
processing technologies like waste to energy and on limited land resources further aggravates the issue.
composting are being supported through regulatory
and financial incentives in the form of preferential 1.2. Challenges of Processing and Disposal
normative tariff for solid waste-based waste to energy In India, MSW management falls within the purview
plants of INR 7.04/kWh and INR 7.90/KWh for RDF of the state and local government. The activities
based plants as well output based market development are delegated to Urban Local Bodies through state
assistance of INR 1,500 per ton of compost. legislation. MSW management is part of public health
and sanitation and is delegated to the Civic Bodies for
However, processing of several fractions of MSW that execution as per the respective Corporation/Municipal/
are combustible in nature but are not recyclable – such Panchayat Acts. Central government provides rules and
as soiled paper, soiled cloth, contaminated plastics, advisories for solid waste management. The revised
multi-layer, packaging materials, other packaging Solid Waste Management Rules (2016) contained
materials, pieces of leather, rubber, tyre, polystyrene directives for all ULBs to establish a proper system of
(thermocol), wood, etc. has remained a challenge that waste management and furnish an annual report to
unnecessarily end up at the landfill site. These fractions the State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs)/Pollution
can be processed and converted to refuse derived fuel Control Committees (PCCs) eventually reaching the
(RDF) which can be utilised as alternative fuel in various Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
industries in line with the principle of waste to wealth.
According to CPCB (2015), processing/treatment
Various challenges faced in mainstreaming of RDF and scientific disposal of MSW is the weakest link of
generation and utilization is presented below: SWM as only 22-28% of generated waste is processed
and treated. The Planning Commission Task Force
1.1. Waste Generation Report on Waste to Energy (May 2014) estimated that
In India, the generation of municipal solid waste (MSW) if the generated MSW continues to be untreated it
is growing by 5% annually1. Of the 1.2 billion people will require 3, 40,000 cubic meters of landfill space
in India, 377 million live in urban areas and generate everyday (1240 hectare per year) for a filling height of
approximately 62 million tonnes of MSW annually, 10 meters height waste pile. Considering the projected
which is expected to increase to 165 million tonnes waste generation of 165 million tonnes by 2031, the
by 2031. The greenhouse gas emissions are expected
to grow from 19 million tCO2e to 41 million tCO2e
annually in a business as usual (BAU) scenario by 2030. 1 According to the Ministry of Finance (2009), the rate of growth of waste generation is 5%
while the World Bank estimates that the rate of growth of urban population is 2.38%.
Waste generation rates vary across urban cities from Source: Government of India: Ministry of Finance (2009): Position Paper on the Solid Waste
349 grams per capita per day in smaller cities with a Management Sector in India, New Delhi, [Link]
ppp_position_paper_solid_waste_mgmt.pdf.
population of below 100,000 to 485 grams per capita 2 Rajendra Kumar Kaushal, George K. Varghese and Mayuri Chabukdara, “Municipal
Solid Waste Management in India – Current State and Future Challenges: A Review”,
per day in bigger cities with a population of more than International Journal of Engineering Science & Technology (IJEST), Vol. IV, No. 4, April 2012,
5 million2. pp. 1473-1489.

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characteristics of mixed waste are summarized in

figure 4.

It is to be mentioned that in India, the general practice

by households is to segregate high worth recyclable
materials (like newspapers, plastic bottles, glass, metals
etc.) and sell it to Kabariwalas (itinerant waste buyers)
on direct payment. Recyclables of less value (torn paper,
plastic pieces, glass pieces, metal pieces etc.) are mixed
Figure 3: Waste management hierarchy with MSW.
(Source: MoHUA and CPHEEO, 2016)
Recycling in India is largely carried out by the informal
sector. The informal sector consists of waste pickers,
requirement of land for setting up landfills for 20 years itinerant waste buyers, dealers and recycling units. The
could be as high as 66,000 hectares of precious land, recyclables collected by waste pickers are sold to small,
which our country cannot afford to waste. Further, it medium and large dealers. The dealers sell it directly
is observed that in majority of compost plant facilities, or through large-scale dealers to recycling units. As
combustible portion often lands in landfills with inerts, per an estimate, the informal sector recycles 20% of
thereby, consuming more space of landfill apart from the recyclable component of MSW collected in India3.
wastage of combustible fraction of waste. It has to be mentioned that this number excludes
the amount of waste recycled from MSW prior to
1.3. Challenges of Processing Combustible Fractions collection, which is commonly not accounted for and
The Solid Waste Management Rules, (SWM) 2016 can amount to four times the quantity recycled from
suggest various technologies for treatment of MSW officially collected MSW. This implies an estimated
considering waste hierarchy principles (see figure 3) overall recycling of 56% of recyclable waste generated4.
and waste characteristics. Though waste composition The waste management hierarchy also recognizes
also varies widely across India, the biodegradable material recovery from waste or recycling as one of
components of waste (including food and garden the most prioritized means of waste handling. After
waste) make the major proportion of waste. The typical recycling, the technology options can be broadly
divided into treatment options for the combustible and
the biodegradable fraction.

The biodegradable components of waste have been

processed in India for several decades through various
composting methods like windrow, vermi and home
composting, etc. The segregated organic waste of
vegetable and fruit markets and other bulk waste
generators are also processed through bio-methanation
and other suitable technologies. However, the
combustible non-recyclable fraction of waste remains
a challenge for processing and often finds its place in
landfills along with inerts. This includes, different end
Figure 4: Various fraction in mixed MSW
of life of products having combustible characteristics
Source: Indian Waste NAMA Report)
like non-recyclable packaging waste, mattresses,

3 Annepu, R. K., 2012, Sustainable solid waste management in India. Columbia University, New York, 2(01).
4 Annepu, R. K., 2012, Sustainable solid waste management in India. Columbia University, New York, 2(01).

Guidelines on Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel in Various Industries

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soiled textiles, papers, etc. This combustible fraction

constitutes around 17-20% of total MSW generated.
This material can be further processed to make fuel
called refuse derived fuel (RDF) and can be used for co-
processing and in waste to energy plants.

The subsequent sections detail out the possible

solutions for scientific disposal of this non-recyclable
combustible fraction.

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2. Scope and Objective

To work towards achieving the objectives of a clean

India under Swachh Bharat Mission, Ministry of
Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) constituted an
Expert Committee in October 2017 to prepare “Norms
for Refuse Derived Fuel from Municipal Solid Waste for
its utilisation in cement kilns, waste to energy plants
and similar other installations” for enhancing the use
of MSW based RDF in various industries in compliance
with the SWM Rules, 2016.

The role of the Committee is to come up with

guidelines for promoting the use of MSW based
RDF for co-processing in various industries. The
recommendations broadly cover the following:

a) The existing policy framework for use of RDF

b) The strength-weakness-opportunity-threats (SWOT)
analysis of co-processing
c) C omparative analysis of the use of MSW based RDF
in various industries
d) P otential for use of RDF
e) G lobal perspective on co-processing
f) Standards for RDF
g) Suggest, measures for operationalisation of standards
h) S uggest incentives and guidance for stakeholders

The overall objective is to recommend the norms

and propose regulatory and fiscal incentives for
utilisation of RDF in various industries for meeting the
objectives of Swachh Bharat Mission. The committee
also deliberated the factors which might influence
the sustainability of co-processing of waste in cement
kilns as a business model, considering the issues and
challenges in the supply chain framework in India in
view of the canonical pillars of sustainability.

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PART A:
RDF Standards

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 6

3. C
 o-Processing Solid
Recovered Fuel (SRF)
Co-firing coal with biomass and/or SRF has increasingly to Netherlands and Germany. Currently Germany
been considered as a way to decrease reliance on imports around 1.6 million tonnes, almost 50% thereof
coal and its associated impacts. Co-firing can be from the UK. The thermal substitution rate within the
achieved via three main options: direct co-firing; cement industry across the globe and leading countries
parallel co-firing; and indirect co-firing. The potential in co-processing can be concluded from Figure 8.
environmental benefits of using SRF and/or biomass as Commendable work done in some countries is given
a fuel in industries are improved carbon emissions and below.
reduction in other types of air pollutants owing to their
low nitrogen and sulphur contents. 3.1.1. Germany
In Germany until 2005, landfilling was an option
3.1. Global Experiences of Co-processing of Solid available for waste disposal. It was banned in 2005.
Recovered Fuel Before the landfill ban was approved in 1993, almost
Within each member state of the European Union, SRF no SRF was produced in Germany. In the meantime,
production and application is more or less established. between 1993 and 2005, the regulatory framework was
SRF and RDF are traded like a commodity across complemented by a set of recycling regulations and
borders. Since handling SRF in different sort of furnaces the SRF/RDF production got increasing support. Owing
requires a comprehensive regulatory framework, it to the lack of treatment and recycling capacity, prices
is not surprising that Western and Central European for incineration started soaring. Consequently, other
states are the frontrunners in this regard. Many treatment options were promoted and the mechanical
developed countries have been operating co-processing biological treatment (MBT) which included the
plants since the 1970s5. Due to lack of facilities to absorb production of SRF (and/or RDF). Driven by commercial
the SRF and RDF and concurrent high landfill taxes, considerations, potential SRF off-takers such as power
countries like the UK and Ireland export SRF and RDF plants, steel mills and cement factories accepted SRF
along with asking for supplier’s charge which was
as high as 30 to 50 €/ton (Rs. 2400-4000 per ton) SRF
during peak times. Current user charges for SRF are
in the range of -20 to 20 €/ton (minus means that the
supplier is paid; (-ve) Rs. 1600) which, of course, is still
subject to the location of the supplier and the off-taker,
and hence is depending on the market. The German
government has approved plans to abandon lignite-
based power generation which is another factor in
favour of SRF/ RDF. By 2008, Germany had replaced 54%
of its conventional fuel used in the cement industry
with RDF, and the Netherlands had replaced more than
Figure 5: Thermal substitution by alternative fuels in 80%.
the cement industry6

5 International Best Practices for Pre-Processing and Co-Processing Municipal Solid Waste and Sewage Sludge in the Cement Industry, A Hasanbeigi - 2012 [Link]
[Link]/sites/all/files/[Link], accessed on 10 April 2018
6 [Link]

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Some of the German cement plants have reached a were shared between cement plants and RDF
100% substitution rate of fossil fuels already. It has to be preparation plants and new partnerships between
noted though that besides SRF, alternative fuels do also local entrepreneurs, international companies
include other fuels. and investment funds emerged. Long-term
contracts between waste management companies
3.1.2. Poland and cement industry further ensured planning
Like the German framework, the Polish SRF market security which fostered an investment-friendly
was also driven by the regulatory framework which was environment.
complemented by the EU directives before and after
the accession to the European Union which happened The current thermal substitution rate of Poland’s
in 2004. In Poland, the use of alternative fuel sources cement industry is currently above 60% – with some
for industrial processing experienced a rapid growth cement plants using up to 85% alternative fuels – out
in the last two decades making the cement industry of which 70-80% is of MSW origin (the remaining
(where 20% of MSW gets converted to RDF) the largest alternative fuels are used in tyres and sewage sludge).
contributor to the country’s waste reduction targets. This rate is far exceeding the global and EU average9,
This trend can be explained mainly by two key factors7: 10
. The cement industry is the largest consumer of
processed waste as a fuel in Poland, with currently
(i) Increased regulations and taxes on waste 1.5 million tonnes annually – a number which is
management: To conform to relevant European expected to further increase to 2 million tonnes in
Union directives, Polish waste regulations were coming years. It is projected that the cement industry
steadily enforced since the 1990s (e.g. Waste will absorb around one third of the total expected
Framework Directive, Waste Incineration Directive, future RDF processing capacity in Poland11. To remain
Landfill Directive). These entailed the multiplication competitive, Polish cement plants are investing in
of state taxes on landfilling MSW and a landfilling new technologies and innovative solutions to further
ban on separately collected combustible waste decrease RDF preparation costs and strengthen the use
in 2013 which put increased pressure on waste of less-prepared waste12. In 2016, an estimated 1 million
management companies to invest in alternative tonnes of coal was replaced by RDF in Poland’s cement
solutions. At the same time, subsidies from the production accounting for an emission reduction of 2.5
European Union and domestic funds facilitated the million tonnes of CO2 per year13.
creation of necessary infrastructure, for instance,
The changing regulatory environment exemplifies what
implementation of waste shredding lines for RDF
may happen in India if rules and regulations on solid
production8.
waste management are enforced.
(ii) W
 illingness of private sector: Prompted by the 3.1.3. Austria
new tax regulations, Polish waste management Co-incineration of plastic-rich SRF has become an
companies extensively invested in co-processing important tool in waste management in Austria.
infrastructure. Additionally, the cement industry Lafarge Austria first began to use alternative fuels in
in Poland actively encouraged waste management one of its plant in 1996, since then Austrian cement
companies to develop facilities that treat MSW to industry has achieved substitution rates of up to 80 %
produce RDF. In some cases, these investments for fossil fuels. The requirements for legal compliance,

7 WBCSD, 2014, The Cement Industry – Creating solutions for sage resource-efficient waste management, report.
8 IFC, 2017, increasing the use of alternative fuels at cement plants: international best practices, report.
9 Ibid.
10 Ecofys, 2016, Market Opportunities for use of alternative fuels in cement plants across the EU: Assessment of drivers and barriers for increased fossil fuel substitution in
three EU member states: Greece, Poland and Germany.
11 Ibid.
12 IFC, 2017, increasing the use of alternative fuels at cement plants: international best practices, report.
13 Ecofys, 2016, Market Opportunities for use of alternative fuels in cement plants across the EU: Assessment of drivers and barriers for increased fossil fuel substitution in
three EU member states: Greece, Poland and Germany.

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guarantee of supply, product quality as well as quality materials, in the form of pellets or fluff produced by
assurance (based on the guidelines CEN/TC 343 – Solid drying, shredding, dehydrating and compacting of solid
Recovered Fuels) are important preconditions for the waste. This material can be utilised for co-processing
use of SRF in the cement industry. in various industries like cement and thermal power
plants, etc.
In Austria, the definition of “waste fuels” or “refuse-
derived Fuels” (RDF) is given in the legally binding
A sound policy framework exists in the country as SWM
Waste Incineration Ordinance (WIO; BMLFUW, 2010).
Rules 2016 (Table 1) recommend the following:
After adequate and extensive (pre- )treatment in
different processing plants and applying strictly defined
Table 1: SWM Rules 2016 on usage of RDF
quality assurance measures, various non-hazardous
Reference Rules/Activities
and/or hazardous waste materials from households,
commerce, and industry can be used as RDF in co- Criteria (i) Non-recyclable waste having calorific
for waste value of 1500 Kcal/kg or more shall not be
incineration plants: sewage sludge, waste wood, high- to energy disposed off on landfills and shall only be
calorific fractions from mechanical-physical (MP) or process. utilised for generating energy either or
through refuse derived fuel or by giving
mechanical-biological (MB) treatment plant14. away as feed stock for preparing refuse
derived fuel.
3.1.4. Japan
Despite its reputation as an advanced nation with (ii) High calorific wastes shall be used
for co-processing in cement or thermal
respect to its MSW management, the SRF and power plants.
RDF production in Japan is coming of age recently Duties of the All industrial units using fuel and located
only. Owing to its land scarcity, Japan relies mostly industrial within 100 km from a solid waste-based
on thermal treatment of MSW (incineration and units located RDF plant shall make arrangements
within one within six months from the date of
gasification, 81% of the almost 43 million tons MSW hundred km notification of these rules to replace at
generated in 2015). In Japan RDF is understood as a from the RDF least 5% of their fuel requirement by RDF
and Waste to so produced.
refuse derived fuel to which putrescible matter and Energy plants
lime was added while RPF (is a sort of solid recovered based on solid
waste
fuel made from industrial/commercial plastic, paper,
pulp and wood waste. According to available data, only Duties of Provide guidance to States or Union
Central Territories on inter-state movement of
644,000 tons of RDF and about 1.25 million tons of RPF Pollution waste.
(refuse derived paper and plastics densified fuel) were Control Board
produced in 2015. Most of the RPF produced is used for
The Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management and
power and heat generation in paper mills (60%) and
Transboundary Movement) Rules, 201615 are notified
dye factories (35%).
by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate
Change (MoEF&CC) which state that co-processing
3.2. Regulatory mechanism on co-processing
means the use of waste materials in manufacturing
As per the SWM Rules, 2016, “co-processing” means use
processes for the purpose of energy or resource
of non-biodegradable and non-recyclable solid waste
recovery or both and resultant reduction in the use of
having the calorific value exceeding 1500Kcal as raw
conventional fuels or raw materials or both through
material or as a source of energy or both to replace or
substitution.
supplement the natural mineral resources and fossil
fuels in industrial processes. Also, the Rules define The advantages and limitations of co-processing of
“Refused Derived Fuel”(RDF) as fuel derived from MSW based RDF in various industries like cement;
combustible waste fraction of solid waste like plastic, thermal power plants and steel industry are detailed in
wood, pulp or organic waste, other than chlorinated Section 3.4.

14 [Link]
15 [Link] accessed on 10 April 2018

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3.3. RDF usage experience across Various Industries technology, the options in thermal power plants can be
The committee deliberated the RDF usage experience considered suitably in future.
with the industry (Sector) specific experts. Officials
from Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), National Table 2. Challenges of using RDF as a fuel in Thermal
Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC), Central Pollution Power Plants
Control Board (CPCB) and Cement Manufacturing S. Parameter Performance
Association (CMA) shared valuable inputs on their No
experiences on the RDF use. The industry wise
(i) Calorific The highly variable nature of size,
experiences are documented below: value density, calorific value across regions and
seasons of the RDF produced can never
ensure that the RDF will be of the same
3.3.1. Thermal Industry calorific value. Heat release rate of RDF
The idea of RDF usage in thermal power plants as is not consistent compared to the Coal
a concept first surfaced in the 1970s in USA where and hence study on the combustion
behaviour of RDF while co firing with
electric utilities expressed their interest to use RDF different blend ratios needs to be done
as supplementary fuel in their boilers. However,
(ii) Size RDF being in fluffy or loose form cannot
the usage of RDF in power plants has technical be mixed with Coal directly as the
impediments which relate to the boiler efficiency. The existing milling system is not designed to
pulverize RDF. Separate milling system,
important considerations for a thermal power plant are conveying system and modification in
combustion and steam stability. The factors that affect combustion system shall be required
the steam stability of RDF as a fuel are the non-uniform (iii) Quality of (i) P resence of silica with alkalis creates
calorific value (which affects the boiler volume and output agglomeration and fouling on heating
amount of steam produced), high moisture content of surfaces
(ii) Silica in fly ash causes erosion of
RDF, lack of flexible combustion air control and non- heating surfaces
uniform feed rate16. The power industry till date has (iii) Chloride compounds of RDF cause
corrosion of heating surfaces
conducted a couple of test runs to replace coal. To even (iv) RDF combustion products contains
achieve a 10% thermal substitution rate in the power SO2 / SO3 that cause acid dew point
sector, there is a requirement of a steady supply of close corrosion
The presence of such corrosive non-
to 165 Mt of biomass and 12 Mt of RDF17. metals in the RDF will over a period
of time reduce the productivity of the
boiler and hence the productivity of the
There are very few incidents of usage of waste or turbine as well.
alternate fuels in power plants in India. Although
(iv) Creation of Combustion temperature above ash
the CPCB has attempted a few trials in the past using Slag fusion temperature leads to ash fusion
industrial hazardous wastes such as ETP sludge, spent and clinker formation on grate. Over
pot lining, resins and non-hazardous wastes such a period of time this reduces the
productivity of the boiler through
as tyres within the captive power plants of certain deposits and increases the cost of
industries, the utilisation rates have hitherto not maintenance.
exceeded the 1% mark18. (v) (i) A
 bsence of a policy on financials,
Policy and incentives, technology choice,
finance capacity building and other
Currently, collaborative research project with Tokyo regulatory issues
Institute of Technology has been taken up by National (ii) Absence of long term Power
Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) for converting Purchase Agreements with
favourable tariff structure
MSW and Biomass waste to solid fuel compatible for
co-firing with high ash Indian coal in thermal power (vi) Boiler The present boiler metallurgy of the
Metallurgy PC fired plants is not suitable for the
stations. Use of biomass in NTPC has also pioneered highly corrosive atmosphere generated
trial experiments of co-firing coal and biomass pellets by burning of high plastics, PVC and
in one of its 210 MW Pulverized coal fired boiler in alkaline element in RDF. This would
result in frequent shutdown of the
NTPC Dadri. However, the research and trails are in boiler on account of tube leakages and
the nascent stage, therefore, with advancement in corrosion related failures.

16 Co-processing of municipal solid waste, incinerator residues and sewage sludge: Current treatment and utilisation practices in the cement industry, CPCB, 2015
17 Co-processing potential in cement, steel and power in India, CPCB, 2015
18 Co-processing potential in cement, steel and power in India, CPCB, 2015

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3.3.2. Iron and Steel Industry of the furnace is typically less than 700° - 1100°C and
The Indian steel industry currently has very little the combustion of RDF at such temperatures will lead
experience in using RDF as a fuel source. This is to the generation of toxic emissions like dioxins and
generally due to the concerns related to the possible furans.
negative impacts on the production process or the
product quality. The expert members from SAIL have 3.3.4. Cement Industry
briefed that MSW derived RDF cannot be used in Iron Processing of the combustible fraction of MSW yields
and Steel industry as the process is autogenous. The Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) and Cement Industry can
usage of RDF as fuel in processes like sinter making or play a vital role in utilising RDF as Alternative Fuel
in reheating furnaces was also explored and it is opined in cement kilns. The current thermal substitution
that since the present mode of energy supply to sinter rate (TSR) of fossils fuels by alternative fuels such as
and reheating furnaces is gaseous, the solid RDF would Industrial waste, biomass and municipal waste, stands
not be the appropriate material for those applications. at only 3.0 per cent, far below the double-digit rates
The challenges of using RDF as a fuel in Iron and Steel achieved in developed countries. The MSW based
industry is further elaborated in Table 3. SCF/ RDF use in cement kiln contributes only 0.6%
of thermal substitution. Cement Manufacturing
Table 3. Challenges of using RDF as a fuel in Iron and Association (CMA) and Cement Sustainability Initiative
Steel industry (CSI) are supporting the Alternative Fuels & Raw
S. Parameter Performance Materials (AFR) usage and over last decade, AFR
No substitution rate has been increased from less than 1 %
(i) Calorific Value The Iron and Steel industry uses in 2010 to more than 3% in 2016. The industry aims to
Coke as the primary fuel in the achieve 25% of TSR by 2025. In order to achieve India’s
furnace. Coke has a calorific value of
over 9000 kcal. ambitious Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC),
RDF is not a homogenous fuel base the cement industry needs to achieve a TSR of 20% or
which will lead to a loss of energy
in the furnace which has to be more by 2022.
compensated through additional
use of coal and coke.
India is the second largest cement producer in the
(ii) Quality of RDF when burnt will also release World after China. The carbon footprint of Indian
Output material which are likely to hamper
the ‘forward reaction rate’ of the Cement Industry is second only to electricity generation
ore. This will lead to production sector. Currently, most cement manufacturers use a
losses of pure iron from the ore.
variety of fuel types like Coal, domestic & imported
(iii) Input feed Mode of energy supply to sinter petroleum coke etc. as high CV fuel in kilns. The net
and reheating furnaces is gaseous;
the solid RDF would not be the CO2 emission factor of Pet Coke is highest among all
appropriate material for those fuels used in cement plants – 105% of coal, 134% of
applications.
plastic and 1060% of RDF.
(iv) Creation of Burning of RDF will also lead to a
Slag higher production of slag, which
is mostly waste and is difficult There have been close to 75 co-processing trials
to manage for the Iron and Steel conducted in various cement plants across the country.
industry. This will also reduce As of 2015, co-processing had been implemented by
the productivity of the ore in the
production process. cement companies such as ACC, Ambuja, UltraTech,
(v) Policy and The challenges include storage
Shree Cements, Jaypee, Dalmia, Lafarge, India Cements,
finance and the cost involved to set up Bharathi Cement, Heidelberg, Zuari Cement, Madras
the process to fire RDF in the blast Cement etc. ACC had achieved a TSR of 2.46% and
furnace.
Ultra-Tech had achieved a TSR of 2.2% in 2014. All the
larger cement plants which occupy close to 60% of
3.3.3. Brick kilns
the market share have currently achieved 2.5% TSR,
Biomass and /or MSW derived fuel has not been
however, these are not the industry benchmarks.
considered in the case of brick kilns as the temperature

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The list of cement plants in different states that have has best equipment sourced from worldwide, with
systems in place for utilizing Hazardous Waste and can an elaborate firefighting system in place. A shredding
also accept RDF is given in Table 4. A comprehensive line of 200 m3/hr (90000 TPA) capacity and with
list of Cement Plants accepting Alternative Fuel/ RDF proper storage & processing shed is in place. The
is placed at Annexure X. Case study of the use of MSW Geomembrane sheet is provided on the floor of the
based RDF in Kymore facility of ACC Cement Plant and facility. A firewater retention basin along with separate
UltraTech Cement co-processing efforts in Tamil Nadu leachate collection system is also provided to avoid
are presented below. contact of spillage material with soil and water. The
plant has laboratory, and sample from each truckload
Table 4. List of Cement Plants with Approval for AFR of MSW fraction is tested for moisture, chlorine, ash,
(Source: CII) calorific value before processing of waste.
Company Plant Location
Case Study 2: UltraTech Cement co-processing efforts
ACC Bargarh (Odisha), Chaibasa
(Jharkhand), Jamul in Tamil Nadu
(Chhattisgarh), Kymore UltraTech Cement Ltd, the largest cement producer in
(Madhya Pradesh), Lakheri
(Rajasthan), Maddukarai (Tamil India, in 2012, with the support of local administration,
Nadu), Wadi (Karnataka), Gagal specifically, District Collectors and Municipal
(Himachal Pradesh)
Commissioners, initiated to use sorted municipal
AMBUJA CEMENT Kodinar (Gujarat), Rabriyawas waste (combustible fraction) at its plant in Tamil
(Rajasthan), Darlaghat
(Himachal Pradesh) Nadu. MOUs were signed with two municipalities
and collectively with a cluster of villages located in
LAFARGE Sonadih and Arasmeta
(Chhattisgarh) Pudukkottai district. The initiative got further boost
after the launch of “Swachcha Bharat” and the company
SHREE CEMENT Ras and Mewar (Rajasthan)
has now tied up with 58 municipalities (plus one
TRINETARA CEMENT Rajasthan MOU collectively for a cluster of villages) to utilise
WORKS
their sorted combustible fraction of MSW at its plant
VASAVDATTA Gulbarga (Karnataka)
in Ariyalur district of Tamil Nadu. During April 2018
to Sep 2018, these municipalities have collectively
Case Study 1: ACC Cement Plant at Kymore in sent more than 11,400 tonnes of sorted combustible
Madhya Pradesh fraction of MSW at UltraTech’s Tamil Nadu plant for co-
ACC Limited is a pioneer in extending co-processing processing. The company has already spent more than
services under the brand name of Geocycle, which Rs. 20 crores in setting up storage, testing, shredding
is the global waste management brand of Lafarge- and feeding systems for pre-processing and co-
Holcim, the promoter of ACC Limited. Lafarge- Holcim processing of waste materials. A further investment of
is one of the world leaders in cement manufacturing more than Rs. 16 crores has been planned to augment
and has an experience of more than 30 years in waste shredding and blending facility. The company has
co-processing. In India, Geocycle has set up 14 co- already started to replicate the same model across its
processing facilities and 6 dedicated pre-processing cement kilns in India and has been co-processing sorted
facilities of handling large volume and varied kinds of MSW at its plants in Gujarat, MP, Karnataka and Andhra
waste including MSW based RDF. At Kymore in MP, the Pradesh. However, the bottlenecks, regarding assured
plant has a capacity of utilizing 350 TPD of alternative quality and quantity of sorted combustible fraction of
fuel. Currently, the plant is getting segregated MSW remain as the major bottlenecks in investing for
combustible fraction of municipal solid waste from related infrastructure.
Katni, Satna and Jabalpur. The other types of waste
include biomass and hazardous waste from Pharma, The burning of RDF with high chlorine content could
Automobile, Manufacturing/ Engineering, Refinery, be detrimental for the cement clinker. However, the
Chemical, Textile & Beverages & other non- hazardous formation of these volatile alkali chlorides can be
wastes like FMCG. The plant is a modern facility and controlled by the means of a kiln by-pass. The major

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factors which create slag and cause fouling is the

Very high temperatures of approximately
ash composition, slag viscosity, the SiO2/Al2O3 ratio Impact on 1400ºC and a residence time of 4-5
and acid/base ratio. Therefore, the particle size of Product seconds in an oxygen rich atmosphere
ensure complete combustion of RDF
the RDF used becomes an important consideration, without affecting the productivity.
as large particles of glass may generate nuclei that
The fuel has a calorific value of around
encourage slag forming reactions. Since the part of non- 3000 Kcal which can generate enough
combustible particles in RDF will be different from that thermal energy required in the processes
in these plants, reducing the use of non-
of coal, it will have a different impact on fouling and renewable fossil fuels like coal.
slagging.
RDF usage replaces fossil fuels with
Environmental materials which would have been
The corrosion of metal surfaces is also a concern when Impact landfilled leading to emissions.
Furthermore, improper landfilling
RDF is combusted in the boiler. This is due to the high would have allowed leachate to run into
temperature liquid corrosion due to alkali sulphates, ground water and become a major source
a reducing atmosphere within the boiler may create of pollution. Furthermore, the use of
equipment to check stack emissions can
corrosive agents like CO and H2S due to partial lead to a reduction of dioxins and furans
combustion19. from being emitted in the atmosphere.
Acidic gases generated in the combustion
The emission norms for co-processing of waste / process are neutralised by the alkaline
Residual raw material in the cement kiln and are
RDF in cement plants are notified by the Ministry of Disposal incorporated into the cement clinker.
Environment Forest and Climate Change in May 2015. A
The interaction of the raw material and
copy of the same is provided as Annexure II. the flue gases in the clinker ensures
that the non-combustible part of the
residue is held back in the process and is
Co-processing in cement kiln achieves effective incorporated in the clinker in an almost
utilization of the material and energy value present in irreversible manner.
the wastes, thereby conserving the natural resources No additional waste is generated in the
by reducing the use of virgin material. Table 4 below process
illustrates the benefits of using RDF as an alternate fuel
in cement industries. 3.3.5. Waste-to-Energy (Incineration)
Waste-to-energy (W to E) or energy-from-waste is the
Table 5. Benefits of using RDF in Cement Industries process of generating energy in the form of electricity
Indicators Benefit and/or heat from the primary treatment of waste.
Cement plants usually require RDF to be Energy recovery in the form of electricity, heat and
RDF shred to the size less than 50 mm which fuel from waste using different technologies is possible
Specifications is not a technological challenge. Particle
sizes less than 50 mm usually disintegrate
through a variety of processes, including incineration,
completely with 4-5 seconds in an oxygen gasification, pyrolysis and anaerobic digestion.
rich atmosphere as is present in a cement These processes are often grouped under “W to E
kiln.
technologies”.
The installation of alternate fuel feeding
Feeding of RDF mechanism enables RDF to be fed into
the cement kiln without any difficulty. Two groups of technologies could be used for
Usually, cement factories build a separate processing different fractions of wastes:
entry point for AFR which can include
pharma waste, FMCG waste, packaging
waste, lubricants, etc. The same feeding (i) B io-chemical waste to energy technologies: can be
mechanism can be used for RDF.
categorized into biomethanation and fermentation.
As this technology provides a solution for the
organic waste only, the same can’t be considered for
using RDF.

19 Co-processing of municipal solid waste, incinerator residues and sewage sludge: Current treatment and utilization practices in the cement industry, CPCB, 2015

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Table 6: Comparative Analysis of MSW based RDF usage

Criteria for ease of Cement Plants Thermal Power Iron and Steel Brick Kilns
implementation (Not recommended
in SWM Rules, 2016
compared for analysis
purpose only)

RDF size RDF size is Additional RDF cannot be used as fuel for RDF size is acceptable
Specifications acceptable shredding steelmaking as the process is
(<50mm) required autogenous.
(<2 mm)
The usage of RDF as fuel in other
processes like sinter making or in
reheating furnaces was also explored
by Steel Authority of India (SAIL) and
it was opined that since the present
mode of energy supply to sinter and
reheating furnaces is gaseous, solid
RDF would not be appropriate for
those applications also.
Impact on Final Negligible impact RDF Burning RDF affects forward reaction No impact on final
Output on final product contaminants rate which leads to lower production product
like Silica and of pure iron from the ore
Chlorides corrode
the heating
surface, thereby
affecting the
boiler

Feeding Mechanism Alternate feeding Alternate feeding Alternate feeding mechanism needs Alternate feeding
mechanism in mechanism to be installed mechanism not
place for feeding needs to be needed
AFR installed
Environmental None if proper Toxic emissions Toxic emissions like dioxins and Toxic emissions like
Impact safeguards are in like dioxins and furans dioxins and furans
place; additionally furans
it leads to net
reduction in GHG
emissions
Residue Disposal None, as it Higher Higher generation of slag, which is a Ash and non-
becomes part of generation of fly difficult to manage waste combustible part
the clinker ash and clinker of RDF need to be
formation on disposed
grate

(ii) Thermo-chemical waste to energy technologies: preceded by conversion of combustible fraction of

MSW thermal technologies are processes that MSW to “RDF” (refuse derived fuel) since Indian
create energy in the form of electricity, fuel or wastes in raw form are not suitable for incineration.
heat from thermo-chemical processes such as, Due to reduction in fuel particle size and removal
gasification, pyrolysis incineration or mass burning of non-combustible material, RDF fuels are more
of municipal solid wastes. MSW, after limited or homogeneous and easier to burn than the gross
full pre-processing is used in most of these thermal MSW. The RDF burning technology includes
technologies. These are also referred to as waste to spreader stroker fired boiler, suspension fired
energy or transformation facilities. Incineration, boilers, fluidized bed units, and cyclone furnace
which is a well-established process, has limited units.
efficiency from the thermodynamics point of
view but could improve up to some extent if it is

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The waste to energy plants across the country can industries with respect to specific factors. These factors
also utilize RDF derived from MSW Plants. During the investigate whether the business and environment can
Expert Committee Meeting deliberations, it was stated optimally benefit from co-processing waste as RDF. The
that in waste to energy plants even RDF of 1100 Kcal factors considered are:
can be utilized however optimum energy recovery is
at 1600 k/ cal. The modern combustors continue to (i) RDF Quality Specifications: Technological changes
perform with MSW composition with 30% ash/inert required to make RDF suitable for usage (e.g.
and up to 40% moisture on sustainable basis. shredding it to the required size).
A typical analysis of acceptable RDF contains Carbon C:
13.66%, Hydrogen H: 1.94%, Oxygen O: 8.90%, Nitrogen (ii) F eeding Mechanism: Difficulty in feeding RDF into
N: 0.45%, Sulfur S: 0.12%, Chlorine Cl: 0.14%, Ash /Inert: the Kiln/Boiler/Furnace.
31.00%, Water/Moisture: 43.78%. The resultant net
calorific value with the above analysis produces 1100 (iii) Impact on Final Output: Impact on quality and
Kcal/kg. quantity of final product like cement, steel, power
generation, etc.
The list of operational and under construction waste to
energy plants is given as Annexure III. (iv) E nvironmental Impact: Impact on emissions due to
usage of RDF
3.4. Comparative feasibility of RDF use in various
industries (v) Residue Disposal: Final rejects to be disposed off
The SWM Rules, 2016 suggest the possible usage of after RDF usage
RDF in various industries. While the usage of RDF
may translate into potential cost savings and reduce Table 6 presents a comparative analysis of specific
fossil fuel consumption, certain safeguards are industries which have been identified for potential co-
necessary to ensure its optimum usage. A comparative processing option of waste as RDF.
analysis of cement kilns, thermal power plants, iron
and steel manufacturing units, and brick kilns (not A comparative analysis of the factors to understand
recommended by SWM Rules, 2016, only considered for the viability of RDF across select industries leads to the
analysis purpose) is detailed in the previous section. conclusion that currently cement is the best suited
The use of RDF as an alternate fuel has been established industry to adopt RDF as an alternate fuel source along
primarily because of its calorific value which can be with fossil fuels.
extracted to generate energy. There is, however, a
need to assess the viability of using RDF in the select

Guidelines on Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel in Various Industries

 15

4. S WOT Analysis
for RDF usage in India
An analysis on the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities Segregated combustible fractions are preferred to use
and possible threats is presented in this section for RDF in incineration plants. Thus, only 40% i.e. around 0.68
usage in India. Lacs TPD of MSW is assumed to be available for RDF
Processing and thus only 13,600 tonnes per day of RDF
Strengths can be utilized for co-processing in cement kilns20.
4.1. Availability of RDF for co-processing
The urban areas comprise of 31.16% (2011) of the 4.2. Enabling Policy Framework
population and considering an average of 0.55 kg/ The key enabling existing polices and initiatives for
person/day of waste generation, around 1.7 Lacs TPD promoting use of MSW based RDF are summarized in
is generated (estimates as per CPCB, 2015). Based on table 7.
detailed the mapping of cities within 200 km radius of
cement plants around 143,379 TPD MSW is generated. 4.3. Mapping of RDF availability across India
Therefore, approx. 28,676 tonnes per day of RDF will be 4.3.1. Waste Management Industry
available for co-processing in the cement plant. The private sector engaged in waste management
However, considering that 88.4 MW of W-t-E is already industry plays an important role in meeting Swachh
operational while another 415 MW is under tendering/ Bharat Mission goals. The projects are implemented
construction and considering collection efficiency in public private partnership model. Other than
ranges from 60-90% in different cities and some direct participation of waste management, industry, is
cities are small or are remote from cement plants, investing corporate social responsibility funds in waste
setting up of RDF production plant is not promoted as management sector. The list of RDF plants and compost

Table 7. List of Enabling Policy Framework for Co-processing

Policy / Programme Enabling Policies

Swachh Bharat Mission Government of India has launched Swachh Bharat Mission on 2nd October
2014, with the objectives of modern and scientific Municipal Solid Waste
Management among other by providing an infrastructure to manage the
waste littering, collection, transportation, treatment and disposal effectively.
Grants are made available for processing and disposal of MSW and therefore
can be utilized for setting up RDF facilities.
Solid Waste Management Rules 2016 Recommend that high calorific wastes shall be used for co‐processing in
cement or thermal power plants or waste to energy plants and all industrial
units using fuel and located within 100 km from a solid waste-based
RDF plant shall make arrangements within six months from the date of
notification of the rules to replace at least 5% of their fuel requirement by
RDF so produced.
Draft guidelines on “Preprocessing and Co- To promote Co-processing, Central Pollution Control Board has drafted
processing of Hazardous and Other Waste in guidelines for preprocessing and co-processing of waste which also includes
Cement Plants as per H&OW(M&TBM) Rules use of MSW based RDF with enabling conditions by regulators for trans
2016 boundary movement of RDF and defining emission standards.
Preferential Tariff for Waste to Energy Plants A preferential tariff for Waste to Energy plants was issued by Central
and Grants by Ministry of New and Renewable Electricity Regulatory Authority (CERC) of INR 7.04 per unit for MSW and NR
Energy (MNRE) 7.90 for RDF21 based projects. In addition, a grant of INR 20 million per MW
is provided for setting up waste to energy plants22 by the MNRE.

20 Waste NAMA Report

21 Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (2015) [Link]
22 MNRE, (2017), Details of Programme On Energy from Urban, Industrial and Agricultural Wastes/Residues Beyond 12th Plan Period (2012-17), [Link]
manager/offgrid-wastetoenergy/programme_energy-[Link]

Guidelines on Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel in Various Industries

 16

plants around cement industry can be accessed from almost 70% of total cement production.
below link:
The cement demand in India comes mainly from
Link to the Functional Waste Management Plants – housing, infrastructure, construction and the
[Link] industrial sector. Between 2000 and 2010, the cement
open?id=1SREhXRUgwu7beKTBmpYUbkeayQc&usp= industry grew at an average rate of 10% per year. The
sharing sector is expected to continue to grow due to recent
Link to the Proposed Waste Management Plants – government initiatives (e.g. the development of 100
[Link] smart cities).
open?id=1R5eZaflQLlMAwZaG4G52aBF-d0w&usp=
sharing Coal is the main fuel used for cement production in
Please use the options on the left-hand side of Google India. Over 30% of the coal used is imported. Fossil
maps to add layers using select. fuels and raw materials used by cement plants can be
in principle replaced to a large extent by Alternative
The figure below depicts the spatial distribution of 100 Fuel and Raw materials (AFR) such as RDF and biomass.
and 200 km buffer from cement industry, functional To reduce energy costs and CO2 emissions, the global
waste to cement industry is gradually increasing the use of AFR.
energy, waste to compost and RDF plant in India In 2014, the Thermal Substitution Rate (TSR) – which
(Figure 6). is the rate at which the calorific value of fossil fuel is
replaced by the calorific value of AFR - reached 19%
of the global average fuel mix in the cement sector.
Within the EU (28 states) the TSR amounts to a total
of 40%, with 26% from waste and 14% from biomass.
However, the use of AFR in the Indian cement sector
is still very low. The average TSR in the cement sector
in India is estimated to be 4%25. The weighted average
TSR of 5 major cement companies in India is an
estimated 2.5%. The aim is to reach a TSR of 25% by
205026. Initiatives of co-processing trials and investment
of over INR 386.7 million for installations demonstrate
that the Indian cement industry is beginning to
develop capacity and competence for enhancing TSR
levels.

With extensive national and global expertise, the

Figure 6. Spatial distribution of 100 and 200 km Indian cement industry is technically ready to adopt
buffer from cement industry, functional waste to higher rates of AFR use27. The Indian cement sector
energy, waste to compost and RDF plant in India is highly organised and major cement companies are
members of the World Business Council for Sustainable
4.3.2. Cement Industry Development (WBCSD) and the corresponding Cement
As per a recent study23, India is the world’s second Sustainability Initiative (CSI) which published the “CSI
largest producer of cement after China, with a Technology Roadmap: Low-Carbon Technology for the
production capacity of 501.86 million tonnes in 2017.
To produce 297.71 million tonnes cement in 2017 the 23 Survey of Cement Industry & Directory 2017, 5th Edition
24 Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP) website
industry consumed approximately 400 million tonnes 25 Helge and Saha (2017)
of virgin raw materials, 28 million tonnes of coal, 26 IEA, WBCSD - Technology Roadmap (2012), page 19
27 IEA, WBCSD - Technology Roadmap (2012), page 17 [Link]
20 billion kWh of electricity and emitted nearly 175 publications/freepublications/publication/2012_cement_in_india_roadmap.pdf
MtCO224 . The top 20 cement companies account for

Guidelines on Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel in Various Industries

 17

Indian Cement Industry”28. A study on GIS mapping of Weaknesses

cement plants and waste to energy plants is undertaken 4.5. Lack of Established Business Model
by GIZ along with TERI. The below links showing It is to be noted that segregated combustible fraction
details of operational waste processing facilities and of MSW cannot be directly utilised for co-processing in
cement plants. cement kilns (see section 6 for details on process of RDF
production). To make it a fuel, pre-processing of MSW
Link to the Functional Waste Management Plants – is required and cement plants also need to have the
[Link] necessary infrastructure of required capacity such as,
open?id=1SREhXRUgwu7beKTBmpYUbkeayQc&usp= storage & handling facility, feeding mechanism etc. to
sharing use this fuel. In the entire process a capital investment
and operation and maintenance cost (including
Link to the Proposed Waste Management Plants –
transportation of RDF to cement plants) needs to be
[Link]
borne by both. However, currently, ULBs do not collect
open?id=1R5eZaflQLlMAwZaG4G52aBF-d0w&usp=
enough waste fees29 to pay adequate tipping fees30 to
sharing
the RDF production plants to enable them to produce
quality RDF at a price that is competitive with fossil
Please use the options on the left-hand side of Google
fuels, e.g. coal. Creating a viable business model for RDF
maps to add layers using select.
production and use in the cement sector thus requires
4.4. Identification of Challenges closing the gap between RDF production costs and
In spite of enough demand and supply of RDF by its sales price to cement producers. The key barriers
vibrant private sector in waste management and related to this aspect are summarised as following:
cement industry and existence of enabling policy
framework of SWM Rules 2016, current on ground a) Lack of competitive prices for RDF production
situation is not very promising due to several challenges (compared to coal): Due to several global demand,
as depicted through Figure 7 below. supply and market factors the price of fossil fuels,
The use of MSW based RDF in cement and waste particularly coal, is not high enough to incentivise
to energy plants involves active engagement of the cement plants to purchase RDF as an option to
following stakeholders’ groups; save cost. Due to the uniform nature of coal the
i. the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs), willingness to pay for coal is higher than that for
ii. the waste management companies/ the RDF plant RDF. Due to low coal prices, it is challenging to
operators recover even the cost of production and transport
iii. the cement companies, and of RDF to cement plants. Therefore, this is a major
iv. the informal sector (mainly waste pickers). barrier to the promotion of co-processing in cement
The barriers which prevent these groups from kilns.
supporting RDF production and co-processing of RDF
in cement and waste to energy plants are elaborated in b) Lack of incentive for cement industry to invest in
subsequent sections. co-processing technology: The cement industry
needs to invest to enable use of RDF in cement kilns
as an alternate fuel. To recover the investment, they
either need RDF at a very low cost or some form of

28 IEA, WBCSD - Technology Roadmap (2012) [Link]

freepublications/publication/2012_cement_in_india_roadmap.pdf
29 Waste fee/User fee = waste management fee = fee charged by the public or
private service provider (e.g. ULB) to the waste producers
30 Tipping fee = fee charged by the operator of a waste processing facility (e.g.
sanitary landfill, treatment plant or RDF production plant) for a given quantity
of waste to be processed

Figure 7. Challenges for RDF Usage in Cement Plants

Guidelines on Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel in Various Industries

 18

financial incentive. As there is no incentive available is made available for setting up MSW management
for cement plants to retrofit their facilities to enable projects but there is no funding available for
co-processing of RDF, there are very few cement covering operational costs as people are not willing
plants willing to invest in the current situation. to pay user or waste disposal fees or in other cases
ULBs are not doing enough to collect sufficient user
c) Lack of trust in RDF quality by cement plants: The fees. Even when financing is available, the setting up
key objective of cement plants is to produce cement of waste management facilities faces resistance due
at the required quality and not to be part of an MSW to the Not in my Backyard (NIMBY) syndrome32.
management system. As such, cement plants will not
engage in RDF co-processing as long as they are afraid 4.7. Capacity Gaps
of low RDF quality that may impact the production a) Lack of awareness and financial resources in ULBs
process or the quality of the cement produced. There and public: The ULBs - which are the primary
are particular concerns of cement plants regarding high stakeholders responsible for MSW management
chlorine contents in RDF and inconsistent calorific suffer from lack of financial resources, institutional
values due to which they have to use this material by capacities; limited knowledge on selection of proper
adding other alternative fuel like biomass by incurring technology for MSW management, lack of public
additional cost. participation in SWM etc.33 In general, awareness
regarding composting and waste to energy has
4.6. Lack of Financial Incentives increased significantly resulting in favourable policy
a) Lack of governmental support programmes to and public response, yet, the limited awareness
promote RDF: Present policies of the Government regarding the potential for RDF co-processing in
of India have provided support for waste to energy cement kilns remains to be addressed.
technologies through a feed-in-tariff of INR 7.04 per
KWh, i.e. approximately INR 1350 per tonne of RDF31 b) Lack of long term agreements: In absence of
and for compost through market development awareness about co-processing, standards of
assistance of INR 1500 per tons of compost sale. RDF and viable business model, no long-term
However, there is no assistance for promoting agreements between urban local bodies, waste
RDF co-processing in cement kilns. Thus, this RDF processing companies and cement plants exist.
processing option is at a disadvantage compared to There is need to draft model long term agreements
composting or W-t-E. on the lines as similar to sale to electricity to
Discoms through power purchase agreement
b) Lack of transitional financial support to close the for waste to energy projects and sale of compost
gap between RDF production costs and acceptable agreements.
sales price to cement companies: Reducing the
costs for RDF processing and co-processing to less c) Awareness on use of MSW based RDF at cement
than the cost of coal can lead to the emergence of plants: At cement plants level, need for creating
a self-sustaining market for RDF co-processing in awareness among workers for use of MSW based
cement kilns. In order to achieve this, significant RDF in cement plant is required as in a few plants,
capacity with the technology and value chain for resistance by plant workers and nearby population
RDF production is required on all sides. While most to the use this RDF exists.
stakeholders are interested in removing the MSW d) Need of integration of informal sector: In India,
from their vicinity, the willingness to pay for safe the informal sector plays an important role in
disposal is often limited. In some cases, financing MSW management and their livelihoods largely

31 The output based market development assistance per tonne of RDF is calculated taking into account that waste to energy plants have Plant Load Factor (PLF) of around
80%.
32 Narain, S. And Sambyal, S.S. (2016) [Link]
33 Government of India: Ministry of Urban Development: Central Public Health and Environmental Engineering Organization (CPHEEO) (2013) [Link]
pdf/57f1f0a614e7aAdvisory%20on%20Improving%20Municipal%20Solid%20Waste%20Manageemnt%[Link]

Guidelines on Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel in Various Industries

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depend on sale of recyclables. Due to limited

source segregation lots of combustible fraction like
paper, plastic etc. are soiled and cannot be used
for recycling. Such components can be utilised for
making RDF and the informal sector can earn some
revenue by picking up such material.

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5. RDF Standards
for Co-processing
Standardization is the development of specifications
for key product features against which product quality
can be compared and controlled. Quality management,
of which Standardization is a part, when properly
implemented plays an important role in marketing
a product by creating confidence in suppliers, end-
users, and regulators. This is particularly true for
Waste Derived Fuels like RDF which are processed
from heterogeneous MSW and are thus prone to wide
compositional fluctuations. According to the European
Committee on Standardization (CEN)34, 35 in 36 the Figure 8: Comparison of Net Calorific Value across
central body creating standards in Europe – creating different standards
standards increases public trust, provides access to
permits; results in cost savings for co-incineration
plants by reducing the need for compliance
monitoring; facilitates trans-border movements; and
aids communication with equipment manufacturers.
In the following sections, an overview on selection
of parameters, existing global standards and Indian
guidelines are provided to arrive at minimum quality
criteria for a RDF standard, as proposed.
Figure 9: Comparison of moisture (in %) across
5.1. Existing Global Standards different standards
The number of quality criteria and standards available
for waste derived fuels in the market today differ
substantially. The standards application may span
from small regions to nations; be legally binding or
constitute trade provisional agreements; rely upon
waste input origin or final product quality; or refer to
all or specific end-users37.

Due to the extent of trading activities, particularly

in the European Commission, SRF suppliers were
interested to harmonise the quality of SRF. In 2003, Figure 10: Comparison of Sulphur and Chlorine
the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN), across different standards.
established a technical committee, the CEN/TC 343,
which developed “European Standard EN 15359 Solid Specifications and classes (DD CEN/TS 15359:2006), 2006.
36 CA Velis, Philip J Longhurst, Gillian H Drew, Richard Smith, and Simon
recovered fuels – Specification and Classes”. While JT Pollard. Production and quality assurance of solid recovered fuels using
mechanical—biological treatment (MBT) of waste: a comprehensive assessment.
34 European Committee for Standardisation. Solid recovered fuels (PD CEN/TR Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology, 40(12):979–1105, 2010.
14745:2003). Ministry of Urban Development, 2003. 37 CA Velis, Philip J Longhurst, Gillian H Drew, Richard Smith, and Simon
35 European Committee for Standardisation. Solid recovered fuels— JT Pollard. Production and quality assurance of solid recovered fuels using
mechanical—biological treatment (MBT) of waste: a comprehensive assessment.
Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology, 40(12):979–1105, 2010.

Guidelines on Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel in Various Industries

 21

these guidelines provide standards of MSW-derived RDF

for cement production, only a few standards/quality
parameters exist for it. Moreover, in some countries,
the waste processed from MSW to be used as fuel
might not be called as RDF. Hence, a broad comparison
for standards for RDF is done without specific end-
user criteria. Comparison of various parameters across
countries is presented in figure 8-10.
American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) 38 Figure 11: Desirable characteristics of RDF for co-
International has developed a classification scale based processing in cement kilns as per MSW Manual, 2016
on seven RDF categories into which different RDF types (Source: MSWM Manual CPHEEO; 2016)
are grouped and presented below.
Another draft guideline by Central Pollution Control
ASTM Description
Classification Board (CPCB) 39 emphasizes the importance of a waste
characterization process within the waste treatment
RDF 1 MSW used as RDF in as discarded form
process. Therefore, the guidelines mandate all pre-
RDF 2 MSW processed to a course particle size with
or without ferrous metal separation
processing and co-processing facilities using hazardous
and other waste in cement plants to perform a
RDF 3 MSW processed to a particle size such that
95% by weight passes through a 50 mm fingerprint analysis on every waste stream as given in
square mesh screen and from which most 5.3.
of the glass, metals and other organics have
been removed
5.3. Need for Standards for RDF in India
RDF 4 MSW processed to a powdered form 95%
by weight of which passes through 10 mesh
The committee deliberated and considered the
screen and from which most metals, glass following factors pertinent to evolve the standards for
and other organics have been removed RDF
RDF 5 MSW that has been processed and densified
(compressed) into the form of pellets, slugs, a) W
 aste heterogeneity: Indian MSW is highly
cubettes or briquettes
heterogeneous (with non-existent segregation
RDF 6 MSW that is processed into a liquid fuel
at source), and the RDF thus generated not only
RDF 7 MSW that has been processed into gaseous varies widely in quality but is often inferior quality.
fuel
On the other hand, cement producers need RDF
of consistent quality and quantity to ensure that
The ASTM classification is based on solid, liquid and cement quality, plant output, and compliance to
gaseous forms, but for Indian scenario, the grading of regulations are not affected.
RDF as per end user requirements
b) D
 ifferent requirements and capacities of cement
5.2. Existing guidelines in India plants: RDF of one quality required by a cement
The Central Public Health and Environmental plant may not be suitable for another plant;
Engineering Organisation (CPHEEO) Municipal every cement plant has specific requirements and
Solid Waste Management Manual, PART II (page therefore standards will help to categorize the
316) provides a quantification of some desirable requirements.
characteristics of RDF for co-processing in cement
plants. However, it is quite general and does not
provide details on the methodology to be used. 38 ASTM International is an international standards organization that develops
and publishes voluntary consensus technical standards for a wide range of materi-
The parameters include particle size, calorific value, als, products, systems, and services.
moisture, chlorine, and Sulphur content (See Figure 11). 39 Central Pollution Control Board. Draft guidelines for pre-processing and
co-processing of hazardous and other wastes in cement plants as per H&OW
(M&TBM) rules 2016. Technical report, Ministry of Environment and Forests,
Govt. of India, 2017.

Guidelines on Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel in Various Industries

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c) B usiness Prospects: The standards will be helpful to e. Chemical compatibility

enter into long-term agreements between cement f. Heavy metal analysis, Reactive Sulphide, Reactive
and RDF plants. Cyanide or Halide (analysis if suspected)

d) C
 ompliance to SWM Rules 2016: Standards will Most of trace contaminants in the RDF, i.e., heavy
enable the implementation of SWM Rules 2016, by metals become part of the clinker matrix, and studies
defining the characteristics/qualities of RDF, so that have shown that their leaching is extremely small
cement producers cannot claim that the product of during the operational lifespan of cement plants46.
the nearby RDF plants is not standard RDF. Other compounds like dioxins and furans, formed
during combustion have been shown to be much less
e) M
 arket Development: For a waste stream to be than W-t-E plants.47, 48
certified as RDF (after appropriate processing) would
help the RDF plant better market their product In the Indian setup, an example of RDF co-processing
and would increase the confidence of cement trial by Vikram Cements (with permission from
manufacturers in using RDF. Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board) showed that
concentration of common pollutants like Particulate
5.4. Parameters to be standardised Matter, NOx, carbon monoxide, HCl, and S didn’t
The most important parameter when using RDF as a significantly change (±1 %) when RDF was used for
substitute fuel in cement industry or waste to energy co-combustion compared to without RDF49. Other trials
plants is the Net Calorific Value (NCV).40, 41 in 42 Other done by CPCB, using hazardous material as co-fuels
important parameters listed in relevant literature in cement plants have shown that with the existing
include Chlorine (C), Sulphur (S), moisture, and ash pollution abatement technologies, the concentration
content.43, 44 of all toxins was within permissible levels50, 51. Based
on this evaluation reporting of heavy metals is not
A technical report by the Central Pollution Control considered necessary for certification as RDF. The trails
Board (CPCB)45 on draft guidelines for pre- and co- mentioned above were however performed using small
processing of hazardous and other wastes in cement thermal substitution rates (TSR) and considering the
plant lists the following parameters for mandatory unsegregated and heterogeneous nature of Indian
fingerprint analyses of waste streams in cement plants: MSW, a higher TSR may necessitate the need for
a. NCV monitoring of leaching products from the clinker.
b. Moisture content
c. Chlorine and Sulphur content Based on these considerations and in line with the
d. Ash content report by CPCB, the parameters (1) size (mm, longest

40 Hyderabad Waste to Energy Project. Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad. URL: [Link]

Accessed 27 August 2017.
41 J Van Tubergen, Th Glorius, and E Waeyenbergh. Classification of solid recovered fuels. European Recovered Fuel Organisation, 2005.
42 CA Velis, Philip J Longhurst, Gillian H Drew, Richard Smith, and Simon JT Pollard. Production and quality assurance of solid recovered fuels using mechanical—biological treatment (MBT)
of waste: a comprehensive assessment. Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology, 40(12):979–1105, 2010.
43 Cement Sustainability Initiative. Guidelines for the selection and use of fuels and raw materials in the cement manufacturing process. World Business Council for Sustainable Development,
38, 2005.
44 J Van Tubergen, Th Glorius, and E Waeyenbergh. Classification of solid recovered fuels. European Recovered Fuel Organisation, 2005.
45 Central Pollution Control Board. Draft guidelines for pre-processing and co-processing of hazardous and other wastes in cement plants as per H&OW (M&TBM) rules 2016. Technical report,
Ministry of Environment and Forests, Govt. of India, 2017.
46 CA Velis, Philip J Longhurst, Gillian H Drew, Richard Smith, and Simon JT Pollard. Production and quality assurance of solid recovered fuels using mechanical—biological treatment (MBT)
of waste: a comprehensive assessment. Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology, 40(12):979–1105, 2010.
47 Central Pollution Control Board. Guidelines on co-processing in cement/power/steel industry. Technical report, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Govt. of India, 2010.
48 Ankur Tiwary, Garima Sharma, and PK Gupta. Quantification of the reduced environmental impacts with use of co-processing in cement kilns in India. Environmental Research,
Engineering and Management, 69(3):5–16, 2014.
49 P V Kiran Ananth. Bulletin: Pre-processing MSW. Technical report, Confederation of Indian Industry- Sohrabhji Godrej Green Business Centre, 2011.
50 J Van Tubergen, Th Glorius, and E Waeyenbergh. Classification of solid recovered fuels. European Recovered Fuel Organisation, 2005.
51 Ankur Tiwary, Garima Sharma, and PK Gupta. Quantification of the reduced environmental impacts with use of co-processing in cement kilns in India. Environmental Research,
Engineering and Management, 69(3):5–16, 2014.

Guidelines on Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel in Various Industries

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Table 8. Proposed Standards for SCF and RDF

S. No Parameters SCF RDF - Grade III RDF - Grade II RDF -Grade I

1. Intended Use$ Input material for the For co-processing For direct co- For direct co-processing
Waste to Energy plant directly or after processing in in cement kiln
or RDF pre-processing processing with cement kiln
facility other waste
materials in
cement kiln
Grade III Grade II Grade I
2 Size Anything above <50 mm or < 20 mm depending upon use in ILC or SLC, respectively
400mm has to be
mutually agreed
between Urban Local
Body/ SCF Supplier
and Cement Plants.
3 Ash – maximum <20 %# <15 % <10 % <10 %
permissible
4 Moisture – <35 % < 20% <15 % <10%
maximum
permissible
5 Chlorine – < 1.0 % # < 1.0 % < 0.7 < 0.5
maximum
permissible
6 Sulphur – <1.5 % # <1.5 %
maximum
permissible
7 * Net Calorific > 1500 KCal/kg net >3000 KCal/kg net >3750 KCal/kg net > 4500 KCal/kg net
Value (NCV) – in
Kcal/kg
(Average figure of
every individual
consignment)
8 Any other SCF – any offensive RDF – any offensive RDF – any offensive RDF – any offensive
parameter odour to be odour to be odour to be odour to be controlled.
controlled. ** controlled. controlled.

Note: $ It is up to the ULB, Cement and other industries to mutually decide which standard of RDF need to be produced.
# If the blending process is done in cement plants, the deviations in recommitted limit for ash, chlorine and sulphur content can be
mutually agreed between urban local body /SCF Supplier and cement plants.
* band width of variations acceptable in NCV can be mutually decided between RDF manufacturer and cement plants.
** Since odour is still largely a matter of perception and there is no satisfactory equipment to measure different types of odour, no
quantitative figure has been given.

side of the material), (2) NCV (kcal/kg), (3) Moisture control over the quality of RDF produced, producing
content (%), (4) Ash content (%), (5) Chlorine content high quality RDF with high NCV, low moisture and Cl
(%) and (6) Sulphur content (%) will be standardized as content, may not be possible due to cost considerations
minimum quality criteria for RDF. (expensive equipment) or nature of Indian MSW.
Keeping the same in view, following values are the
5.5. RDF Standards minimum criteria that should be fulfilled for the
The characteristics (composition, physical and chemical product to be certified as RDF, as decided by the Expert
properties) of MSW stream differs across cities in Committee (Table 8).
India. Although MSW-based RDF plants have some

Guidelines on Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel in Various Industries

 24

Part B:
Preparation
and Usage of RDF

Guidelines on Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel in Various Industries

 25

6. RDF- Functional Elements

6.1. Constituents of Waste for RDF source segregation, collection, transportation,

MSW consists of various different fractions and to processing and disposal of MSW under SWM Rules
manage them effectively, different technological 2016. Under the Swachh Bharat Mission, door to door
processes are required. As per SWM Rules 2016, waste collection system has been initiated by ULBs.
depending on waste characteristics and waste hierarchy, While making RDF, it should be ensured by ULBs
the potential treatment options are summarized below that the existing system of recycling largely carried
out by informal sector, consisting of waste pickers,
itinerant waste buyers, dealers and recycling units
are not negatively affected. The waste management
hierarchy also recognizes material recovery from waste
in the form of recycling as one of the most prioritized
manners of waste handling and ULBs shall ensure
in Figure 12. following safeguards for recycling.
Figure 12 Source segregation fractions mandated by a. During door to door waste collection and
SWM Rules, 2016 transportation, the collected recyclables fractions
shall be diverted to recycling units by integrating
The segregated combustible fraction includes waste workers.
recyclables of less value (torn paper, plastic pieces, b. Separate transportation of wet and dry fractions
glass pieces, metal pieces etc.) mixed with it. Also, a of MSW as per SWM 2016, so that after separating
percentage of garden waste, soiled paper, cardboard, recyclables, the leftover segregated combustible
textile, thin film plastic, multi-layered packaging fraction can be processed for making RDF.
and other such materials not suitable for recycling c. Separate transportation of rejects from
due to technical and financial reasons and ends up at decentralized waste management facilities.
dumpsites and water bodies which can be converted d. At the processing plant site also, during manual
into RDF. and mechanical separation, the recyclable material
should be sent to recycling units.
As per the CPCB guidelines52 the following waste should
NOT be used for co-processing: The leftover segregated combustible fraction shall be
(i) Biomedical waste preprocessed or stored by ULBs / Waste Management
(ii) Asbestos containing waste. Company.
(iii) Electronic scrap.
(iv) Entire batteries. 6.3. Storage
(v) Explosives. The ULBs shall make arrangement for safe storage of
(vi) Corrosives. segregated combustible fraction of waste for conversion
(vii) Mineral acid wastes. to RDF. ULBs own RDF Plants shall have, separate
(viii) Radioactive Wastes. storage facility for RDF. In smaller ULBs, depending on
(ix) Unsorted municipal garbage the frequency of transportation of material to nearest

6.2. Collection and Handling of waste for RDF 52 Central Pollution Control Board. Draft guidelines for pre-processing and
co-processing of hazardous and other wastes in cement plants as per H&OW
The urban local bodies are responsible for ensuring (M&TBM) rules 2016. Technical report, Ministry of Environment and Forests,
Govt. of India, 2017.

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RDF Plant or waste to energy facility, storage facilities reverse haulage options may be explored by the parties.
for waste fractions shall be provided. As per the The weighment record of material transported and
guidelines of CPHEEO Manual, adequate arrangement received by waste to energy plant or cement plant shall
for firefighting approved by the competent authority be maintained at both sites.
shall also be installed.
The RDF co-processing in cement plants involves three
6.4. Transportation key steps involving collecting and supplying MSW to
The safe and regular transportation of RDF or RDF plants for RDF production followed by use of RDF
segregated combustible waste fractions to nearest in cement kilns. The figure 13 below presents flow of
waste to energy or cement plants (as the case may be) MSW to RDF plants and then supply of RDF to cement
shall be done by ULBs or Private operator or by the kilns.
cement plant (as varies from case to case). To ensure the
same, long term agreements have to be signed by the The RDF from other ULBs can also be sent to waste to
parties. As per the agreement, the RDF or segregated energy plants in similar way.
combustible waste fractions can be sent in the form of
fluff, bales or pellets. To optimize transportation cost,

Figure 13. Flowchart of MSW to RDF plant to RDF

co-processing in cement kilns

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7. RDF Preparation
& Quality Check Mechanism

The key processes involved in RDF production are

summarized below in table 9 and Fig. 14.

7.1. Steps for RDF Preparation

For producing RDF, it is desired that source segregation
is rigorously implemented and collection and
transportation of the dry fraction of the MSW is carried Figure 14: Schematic overview of RDF manufacturing
out separately. The dry fraction is first processed to process53
remove the recyclable materials. The left-over material,
which is segregated combustible fraction, is then
processed through a dedicated facility having screening,
shredding, air density separation, blending, etc. to 53 Murdoch University (2009) [Link]
Tech/waste/
produce the desired quality SCF/RDF. The schematic
representation of process is given in fig. 14

Table 9. Standard components of RDF plant

[Link] Standard components of RDF plant
1 MSW receiving, sampling, hand sorting and bag-opening area: The MSW arriving in trucks or compactors is
unloaded for collection of samples, hand sorting of large components and transported to the bag opening machines.
2 A twin shaft primary shredder is designed to shred MSW to less than 100 mm
3 A rotary trommel is then used for separating the fine sand and silt from the MSW before it can be sent for further
processing. The material tumbles in the rotary screen as it moves ahead across the length of the screen and the fine silt
and sand gets removed through the holes provided in the screen. The rest of the material is discharged onto the belt
conveyor which carries the material for further processing. After the trommel, a belt for hand sorting (separation of
recyclables) should be placed.
4 An air density separator and dryer consist of a rectangular column designed to separate out light fractions from heavy
inert. The material is introduced at the top section and air blast is given at its bottom. Both incoming and outgoing
materials pass through their respective airlock valves. It is a three-stage process. High pressure air blast de-agglomerates
the incoming materials and the very light fraction is sucked up. Furthermore, the air blast from the bottom of the
column moves the medium sized fraction of the material up in the air. The bottom fraction consists of heavy material
that falls through the airlock and gets discharged. Hot air can also be injected in the system to lower the moisture
content of material.
5 A twin-shaft secondary shredder is designed to shred the material to less than 50 mm. Further components include
again a main drive motor, a reduction gear box, other integral components and a starter panel.
6 The fine shredder is designed to reduce the size of the RDF fluff after it has passed through the secondary shredder.
7 Finally, a pellet press (optional) is designed to produce fuel pellets with a 16 – 25 mm diameter by extrusion. Ground
and conditioned material are fed to the pellet press by gravity feed. A roller presses the material through die holes and
extrudes the material. The size of pellets can be adjusted by a knife provided below the die press. The pellets are cooled
on a cooling conveyor and sent for storage.
8 Testing of RDF and Transportation to cement plants/ waste to energy plants

Note: In some modern plants dynamic disc screen (DDS) is installed in place of trommels for size gradation (size based separation)

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7.2. Steps for quality check of RDF at co-processing Table 10- BIS Standards
facility Stage Standard
According to the Guidelines of the CPCB54, (Section 3.0)
Glossary of terms relating to solid wastes IS 9569
for Treatment, Storage & Disposal Facilities (TSDFs),
Stand-alone Pre-processing Facilities and Cement plants Methods for preparation of solid waste IS 9234
sample for chemical and microbiological
shall undertake pre-processing and co-processing analysis
of wastes as per the Standard Operating Procedures Physical Analysis and Determination IS 9235
(SOPs). of Moisture in Solid Wastes (Excluding
Industrial Solid wastes)
Section 5.5 of the CPCB guidelines lists steps on how Methods of Analysis of Solid Wastes IS 10158
(Excluding Industrial Solid Wastes)
waste categorisation should be carried out ‘before
pre-processing and ultimately co-processing into the
cement kilns’. It is assumed that this is valid at both 7.3. Methodology
input and output stages of a pre-processing facility as The recommendations do not specify the exact
well as at the receiving end, i.e., the cement plant. The methodology to be followed for waste categorisation
following steps shall be undertaken: but mention:
(i) Upon receipt of the waste, it shall be weighed and “Starting from sampling like the collection of a
properly logged. representative sample, its storage in a suitable
container, avoiding any adulteration during
(ii) It shall then undergo a visual inspection to confirm transportation to lab, sample preparation in the
the physical appearance. lab, performing test as per BIS for different quality
parameters and carefully observing, recording and
(iii) A representative sample of the waste shall be comparing the results”.
collected and sent to the onsite laboratory for
finger print analysis. The fingerprint analysis The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has no standard
should be done for each consignment of waste for selection of representative waste sample and
received for pre-processing or co-processing, i.e., transportation to the lab. However, IS 9234 provides
at both the input (raw feed) of the RDF plants and method for sample preparation and a few standards
the output (RDF) of the plant. exist for measurement of some required values, namely
particle size, moisture content, calorific value.
(iv) The following should be part of the analysis:
• Moisture content 7.4. Concerned Standards
• Ash content 
 The BIS standards are presented in table 10 below.
• Chloride and Sulphur content 
 In the absence of standards for other parameters,
• Net Calorific Value (NCV) 
 namely ash, chlorine, and sulphur content (specifically
• Any other specific parameter, which may be for solid waste), either the BIS can make these standards
decided on the merit of each case keeping the (especially for solid waste/RDF), or an international
clinker production process in focus. set of standards be used, especially designed for RDF,
• Heavy metal analysis, Reactive Sulphide, Reactive e.g., ASTM (American Section of the International
Cyanide or Halide analysis, if present. Association for Testing Materials):

54 Draft guidelines for pre-processing and co-processing of hazardous and other

wastes in cement plants as per H&OW (M&TBM) rules 2016. Technical report,
Ministry of Environment and Forests, Govt. of India, 2017. [Link]
in/final_report_27.[Link]

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Table 11 ASTM Standards b) The resulting sample is then dried in an oven

Stage Standard followed by shredding to a very fine size of <1 mm or
<2 mm.
Test Method for Collecting Gross ASTM D5115 -
Samples 90(1996) Standard
(ii) Frequency of sampling
Standard Practice for Preparing ASTM E829 – 16
Refuse-Derived Fuel (RDF) The finger print analysis is carried out either on
Laboratory Samples for Analysis consignment (i.e., each truck) or shift (once or multiple
Test Method for Thermal ASTM E955-88(2009) times per shift), or daily average basis (many times
Characteristics of Refuse-Derived e1 Standard during the day and averaged). The frequency depends
Fuel Macro samples,
on the expected variability of the consignments [21].
Test Method for Residual Moisture ASTM E790-15
in Refuse-Derived Fuel Analysis Standard
Samples (iii) Parameters measured and standards used:
Test Method for Determination ASTM E776-16
For finger print analysis, the parameters are measured
of Forms of Chlorine in Refuse- Standard as per BS EN Print Analysis Standards (Table 13).
Derived Fuel
Test Methods for Total Sulfur in the ASTM E775-15 Table 13. BS EN Print Analysis Standards
Analysis Sample of Refuse-Derived Standard Parameter Standard used
Fuel
Particle Size BS EN 15415-1:2011

Table 12. BS EN British Standards Net Calorific Value BS EN 15400:2011

Stage Standard Ash content BS EN 15403:2011

Methods for sampling BS EN 15442:2011 Moisture content BS EN 15414-3:2011

Methods of preparation of laboratory BS EN 15443:2011 Chlorine content BS EN 15408:2011

sample
Methods for the preparation of the test BS EN 15413:2011
sample from the laboratory sample 7.5. Testing Infrastructure
Most cement plants are equipped with a laboratory to
carryout finger print analysis on conventional fuels (like
The Geocycle facility in India routinely pre-processes
pet-coke). A typical laboratory contains the following
segregated combustible fraction and feeds the
setup as defined in table 14.
processed RDF to its own cement plants. The
methodology for doing fingerprint analysis and
standards followed by them are as under:

(i) Sample selection for laboratory analysis

a) Method of coning and quartering: This method is
used to reduce the sample size of a material. It involves
pouring the sample into a cone and then flattening
it out in a cake. The cake is then divided into four
quarters and two quarters on the opposite side are
discarded. The other two quarters are grouped together
and the process is repeated until an appropriate size
sample remains. Table 12 presents the BS EN British
Standards used.

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Table 14. Laboratory Infrastructure Details

Sr. No. Parameter Equipment details Number

1 Moisture content Oven 2

2 Ash content Furnace 1

3 Chloride Autotitrator 1
4 Calorific value Bomb calorimeter 1
6 Auxiliaries Analytical balance 1
7 Auxiliaries Distilled water system 1
8 Auxiliaries Sieves (different sizes) 1
9 Auxiliaries Top loading balance 1
10 Auxiliaries (optional) Cutting mill with cyclone system 1
11 Auxiliaries Hot plate 1
12 Auxiliaries Sampling tools 1
(Scoops, shovel, trays made of S.S.)
13 Auxiliaries Glassware 1
(Beakers, volumetric flasks etc.)
14 Auxiliaries Pure Oxygen cylinder with regulator 1
Source: Geocycle

A similar laboratory setup will need to be installed by the RDF producers to ensure that quality product
is supplied to cement plants and a mechanism to be put in place to maintain the record of quality of RDF
supplied.

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8. Role of Stakeholders
This section deals with the role of various stakeholders as per standards defined in section 5 and agreed by
involved in the rollout of RDF co-processing. the end user (cement or waste to energy plant). The
process of RDF preparation is covered in section 6.1. A
8.1. RDF Producers- ULBs & Private Operators representation of the same in a block diagram is given
To promote the use of RDF the following should be below in figure 15:
undertaken by ULBs: In case RDF producers have an integrated waste
(i) In most urban local bodies, waste management management contract from urban local bodies,
services are implemented by contracts or in public implementation of source segregation and collection
private partnership model. Therefore, at the stage and transportation of segregated waste has to be
of tender, if cement plants or waste to energy ensured for maximum resource recovery.
plants are available within a reasonable distance
(400 km) utilization of RDF in these facilities needs 8.2. RDF Users– Cement plants and waste to energy
to be mentioned in contract documents. plants
The RDF users shall clearly define the RDF specification
(ii) To ensure implementation of source segregation (as per the standards defined in section 5) and can enter
and collection and transportation of segregated into long term agreement with RDF suppliers.
MSW for resource recovery so that only non-
recyclable combustible fraction needs to be sent for The cement plant using RDF requires additional
co-processing. equipment which will depend on a number of factors
such as:
(iii) Long term tripartite agreements for the supply of (i) type and number of RDFs that are to be used
RDF could be signed by ULBs, RDF Producers and (ii) the final envisaged TSR at the cement plant
cement plants (like signed for compost). (iii) the design of the existing facilities at the cement
plants
(iv) Recovery of user charges for operation and (iv) the design of the kiln (kiln type) with regard to the
maintenance (including transportation) cost for details of the RDF feed, combustion and lining of
RDF plants through tipping fees for RDF producers the calciner
and to access Swachh Bharat grant/ funds for
setting up RDF facilities. While several existing components within the cement
plant can be used (e.g. the weighbridge for the
The RDF producers will be responsible for making RDF incoming trucks, assumed to be already available),
other components need to be constructed in addition
to the existing components at a cement plant. An
overview of the equipment required is presented below.

a) Receiving facilities (including sampling station

and laboratory): The cement plants need to have
sufficient data on the received RDF to ensure
undisturbed operation of clinker production.
Accordingly, facilities are required to take samples
of the RDF from the incoming trucks and to
Figure 15 Process block diagram for manufacturing
analyse the referred parameters of the RDF (e.g.
RDF from SCF
NCV, heavy metals, etc.).

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b) RDF pre-processing: It is assumed that the RDF is c) RDF storage: Continued supply of fuels is a key
produced and supplied to the cement plant at high condition to be maintained at the cement plant.
quality avoiding any treatment requirement at the Accordingly, storage facilities for RDF need to be
cement plant. Nevertheless, suitable pre-processing constructed at the cement plant duly considering
especially with regard to mixing or homogenisation the fire hazard associated with RDF storage.
may require related equipment to be installed at d) RDF dosing, feeding and burning system: This
the cement plant. In addition, mobile technical includes, for example, a weight belt feeder. In
equipment such as wheel led / front-end loaders addition, the detailed location of RDF burning
may be required. (feed points) within the clinker production process
(e.g. main firing, kiln inlet firing, secondary firing
or pre-calciner firing) determines the requirement
for installation of the related feeding and
burning system. Usually it is a mix of several feed
points (options are shown in the figure below).
Compliance with air pollution regulations might
result in the need to install further components
and equipment.

Figure 16: Options for fuel feed points at cement

55 GIZ/Holcim (2011)
kiln55 56 CPCB (2015), page 23

Table 15: Emission limits for cement kilns co-processing in India56

Parameter a EU limit US (Load Based) South Africa India b

Total Dust 30 0.005 kg/t of clinker c 30 50 (or 0.125 kg/t of clinker)

HCI 10 10 10
HF 1 1 1
NOx for existing plants 800 0.75kg/t of clinker 800 800
NOx for new plants 500 600
Cd + Tl 0.05 0.05 0.05
Hg 0.05 0.05 0.05
Sb + As + Pb + Cr + Co + 0.5 0.5 0.5
Cu + Mn + Ni + V
Dioxins and furans 0.1 d 0.1 d 0.1
(ng I-TEQ/Nm3)
SO2 50 e 0.2kg/t of clinker 50 e 100 f
TOC 10 e 10 e
CO National
values

a Daily average values for continuous measurements (mg/Nm3)

b Limits proposed to come into force from 01.08.2015 (IIP, 2014); Emissions limits of EU, US and South Africa taken from Hasanbeigi et al., 2012
c Emissions on a 30-operating day rolling average
d Dioxins and furans must be measured at least twice a year, and at least every 3 months for the first 12 months of a plant’s operation
e Exceptions may be authorized by competent authority if TOC and SO2 do not result from the incineration of waste
f Relaxable up to 400 by SPCBs in special cases, CPCB proposed 100 (for <0.5% sulphur in raw materials), 1000 (for >0.5% sulphur in raw materials)

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The facilities and equipment described above shall

generally include measures to minimise impacts from
odour and to prevent health risks for the workers and
the neighbourhood. In addition, power supply and
firefighting facilities are required.

8.3. Regulators
As per Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB)
guidelines, a waste type (i.e. RDF) that was tested and
approved in one cement plant can be used for regular
co-processing in another cement plant and state
pollution control boards (SPCBs) can provide approval
based on the CPCB guidelines. The SPCB should ensure
that emissions are monitored and reported by cement
plants as per the guidelines. Emissions limits proposed
for India and their comparison with limits in other
countries are presented in Table 15 below:

For waste to energy plants also, environmental

compliances need to be monitored as per requirement
by SPCB. The official communication in this reference is
attached as Annexure II. It should be ensured that RDF
derived from MSW shouldn’t be used without emission
control system.

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Part C:
Financial Analysis
and Rollout Models

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9. Financial Analysis
and Funding Support
For making the operational and financial models cement producers to achieve an average alternative
successful, the guidelines also suggested the pricing fuel substitution rate of around 35%. If the entire global
of various grades of RDF in comparison with coal and cement sector achieves this substitution rate on average
petcoke. by 2050, it would significantly reduce the amount of
coal (and other fossil fuels) required. In light of this, it is
9.1 Comparison with Coal and Petcoke estimated that 25% is a reasonable estimate for a global
Coal still makes up around 90% of the energy input alternative fuel substitution rate by 2050. However,
in cement plants around the world, despite the the rapidly-expanding infrastructure projects around
environmental concerns. It takes 200 - 450kg of coal the world, particularly in developing countries where
to produce 1 tonne of cement. The cement industry coal is the main fuel, coal usage for cement is likely to
consumes around 4% of global coal production, about continue in the absence of any strict regulation.
330 million tonnes per year. Under the Alternative Fuel
and Resources (AFR) concepts, there are ample ways Currently, Indian cement companies significantly use
to substitute coal in cement manufacturing without pet coke – a high carbon by-product of petroleum
adding to emissions and saving on natural resources by refining – as their main fuel, which has the highest net
using waste of equivalent energy. CO2 emission factor of all fossil fuels. Due to this, the
carbon intensity of the fuel mix of the Indian cement
The drive for AFR has been the EU legislation which industry is higher than other major cement producing
along with economic factors enabled the European countries.57 Import of pet coke in India has increased

Table 16. Comparison between Coal and RDF

Fuel/Factor Coal Petcoke RDF

Calorific Value (Kcal/Kg)* 3000-6000 7900 – 8300 2500-4500

Equivalent Ton in calorific value 1 1 1.15
Cost per Ton in Rs. (Avg.)** 2100-4500 9000 1100-1800
Sulphur content (weight %) 0.4 5.5 0.2-0.5
Moisture content (weight %) 3-9 2.0 10
Ash content (weight %) 4.2 0.4 <15
NOx content (weight %) 1.2 1.5 1-1.5
Carbon (weight %) 31.4 87.6 35-40
Oxygen (weight %) 7.4 1.7 25-30
Hydrogen (weight %) 4.3 3.7 5-8
*Cal Value: Various Sources (IPCC, EPA, Lab tested results, cement plant data)
**Pet coke prices: Live Mint and India Mart
Other data: Global CCS Institute

57 World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD, 2016)

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over 150% from 5.8 million tonnes in 2014-15 to 13.3 Performance testing is generally required by state air
million tonnes in 2016-17, mostly due to demand from quality regulations, to determine that the cement
the cement industry. Imported pet coke contributed kiln operation with AFR is in compliance with its air
approximately 44 million tonnes CO2 to India’s GHG emissions permit conditions.
emissions in 2016-17, representing 2% of India’s total
emissions. It also drains out valuable foreign currency There are various aspects to the overall cost of
reserves. alternative fuels, including the capital costs and
operating costs of:
In India, coal and petcoke are the predominant fuel • Kiln and equipment upgrades;
used for cement production but shortages in coal • Performance testing;
supplies are making imports necessary primarily • Alternative Fuel conditioning (preprocessing);
petcoke. Both quality and availability have seen • Engineered fuel production;
variations, while price increases have been noted. The • Material transportation;
price of coal and petcoke varies depending upon the • Continuous Emissions Monitoring Systems (CEMS);
region of the country, mainly because of transportation • Sampling and testing of materials; and
costs. The prices of thermal and industrial coal vary • Material acquisition.
from INR 1900- 4500/MT. Continuous supply of coal
is also a concern, and many cement and power plants Several cement manufacturing companies have
have been forced to halt operations at times due to already conducted experiments in their cement kilns
lack of coal. This situation provides impetus for a for utilizing wastes and other hazardous wastes as
regular and sustainable use of RDF in cement industry, alternate fuels and have demonstrated success. The
as a substitution rate of even 5% will result in RDF CPCB was also a partner in some demonstration studies
utilization of about 0.5 MTPA, which is 3% of total RDF to establish the compliance to emissions. Thus, it
potential out of municipal solid waste. The table below only remains that the AFR system is established in
presents the comparison in the Coal vs RDF. the cement manufacture in India, for which suitable
economic pricing has to be derived.
9.2 Preparatory Requirements in Cement Plants for
use of RDF 9.3 Pricing of RDF
Cement manufacturing companies have different As discussed in the earlier section, the use of municipal
approaches for management of cost for use of solid waste derived RDF in cement kilns would entail
alternative fuels. Some companies have company-wide additional cost towards its processing, transportation,
initiatives to invest in upgrades to kilns or to materials the feeding mechanism and its modifications,
handling equipment to initiate use of alternative fuels, monitoring of emissions and the quality of cement
and also promote pilot projects in which different output. These costs in RDF usage need to be properly
cement plants of the company conduct studies of apportioned, as per requirement in comparison with
different alternative fuels. In addition to the cost of the corresponding costs for coal vis-à-vis the calorific
modifications to the kiln or materials handling system, values. The data regarding the coal substitution by
the cost of performance testing is also incurred to RDF and the cost needs to be generated on a case to
establish use of alternative fuels in cement production.

Unit SCF RDF RDF Grade RDF Industrial Petcoke

Grade III II Grade I Coal
Kcal/Kg 1500 3000 3750 4500 3000-4200 7900 – 8300
Minimum Rs./Tonne (assumed @ Rs. 600 1200 1500 1800 4500 9000
0.4 per 1000 Kcal/kg)
Maximum Rs./Tonne (assumed @ Rs. 1200 2400 3000 3600
0.8 per 1000 Kcal/kg)

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case basis at each location of the cement plant and the Table 18. Tentative Capital Cost for setting up to 100
source of MSW – RDF. TPD plant
[Link]. Items Cost
For initiating the RDF usage in cement industry, the (Rs.
Lakhs)
Committee Members agreed that different RDF types
have different calorific values, and so the cost of each 1 Air Shifter (1 nos.) 25
combustible fraction have to be expressed in INR 2* Shredder Metso (14tph @ 50mm X1 nos.) 390
per 1000 Kcal/kg to be comparable. The commercial 3* Screen, Ecostar make for segregation & 145
acceptability of properly processed RDF was agreed at recycling 1 no. @12 tph
Rs. 0.4 per 1000 Kcal/kg by the members with reference 4* Baling Machine (1 X 15tph) 102
to the specifications as defined in the guidelines. It is
5 Magnetic band (1 no.) 3
also suggested that RDF prices be dynamic and linked
with the cost of coal. 6 Conveyors (50 mtrs length approx) 13
7 Weigh Bridge-60T 11
In overall, once RDF of the quality/specifications is 8 Electricals
made available, on a dependable basis, within the
a 600 KVA transformer 10
transport influence zone of 400 km of a cement plant,
market forces would prevail upon where the ULB, the b 1 nos. of 365 KVA DG 22
RDF processors and cement plants would negotiate an c Panel & cables 10
agreeable cost of RDF considering various factors.
d VCB 4

To begin with, the suggestive maximum and minimum e Earthings 5

prices of the respective grades of RDF as worked out for f Lighting of shed & boundary wall 15
guidance is presented below: 9 Civil (Covers Boundary wall, office block, 172
The above-mentioned prices may prove to be indicative rain water harvesting, bore well, soaking
pit, road, toilet etc.)
Table 17: Indicative Capital and Operation and 10 Covered Shed (2000 sqm) 200
Maintenance Cost of RDF Plants of various sizes
11 Office furniture & computer 2.5
Parameters (INR) Size in TPD
12 Lab equipment 10
Upto100 100-200 200-300
13 Fire fighting 30
CAPEX (Source 1) 240,000,000
14 Reject collection Bins- 6 nos. 3
CAPEX (Source 2) 153,000,000 341,910,000 447,690,000
25 mm 15 Electrical Connection charges (govt. 10
department)
CAPEX (Source 2) 125,400,000 215,580,000 295,250,000
50 mm 16 Vehicle (JCB 1 nos. & Tractor 1 no.) 35

OPEX (Source 1) 1750 Total 1217.5

<20 mm
Contingency @3% 36.5
OPEX (Source 1) 1400
<50 mm Grand Total 1254.0
OPEX (Source 2) 1390 1870 1851
Rounded Off 12.55
25 mm
Cr
OPEX (Source 2) 1150 1200 1280 (Cost Source: M/s IL&FS Environmental Infrastructure &
50 mm
Services Ltd.)
Transportation 300 300 300 Note: *Normally trommels have been used for size
Cost for 100 Km
per tonne (@Rs 3 gradation (size-based separation). In some modern
per Km)* plants dynamic disc screens (DDS) are used in place of
* The cost of transportation decreases with increase in trommels.
distance and reverse haulage options.

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Table 19 Tentative Operation and Maintenance Cost for setting up to 100 TPD plant per tonne (100 TPD X 50
mm Shredded RDF Duly Baled Line)
[Link]. Activity/ Equipment 100 TPD Shredding Line

Unit Cost Remarks

(Rs.)
1 Shredder consumables per ton 110 Refer Metso mail
2 Others mechanical equipment consumable & per ton 50 -
maintenance
3 Power consumption for 8 hours per ton 273 Air Shifter=20 kW
(387.5 kwhr @ Rs.11 per kwhr) Shredder=250kw
(Load factor = 0.8) Screen= 7.5kw
Baling mc= 60 kW
Conveyors= 20kw
Lighting = 10kw
Others = 20 kw
Total = 387.5 kw
(Assumed 80% load factor)
(*(387.5 X 80% X 8 X 11)/100 =
272.8)
4 6 man-days @ Rs.600 per day for shredders & screen per ton 36 -
operation & manual sorting over the conveyors

5 Mechanical Handling (Man Power + JCB+ Tractor) -

a Vehicles charges for 8 hours@ Rs. 625 per hour per ton 50 -
b 4 man-days @ Rs.600 per day per ton 24 -
6 Staff & Technicians -
a Assistant manager (1 no. @ 5lakh per annum) per ton 14 -
b Accountant (1 no. @ 3lakh per annum) per ton 9 -
c Supervisor (1 no. @ 3lakh per annum) per ton 9 -
d Security (3 nos. @ 10244 per month) per ton 11 -
e Weigh bridge operator (1 no. @ 18000 per month) per ton 6 -
f Store man (1 no. @ 18000 per month) per ton 6
g Electrician (1 no. @ 18000 per month) per ton 6
7 Interest (15%) & Depreciation on Capex on Rs. 1255 per ton 547**
Lakh
Total (Rs. Per ton) 1151

**Depending on cost sharing in form of grant, the cost of operation will reduce appropriately

over the time and market forces will govern the long much dependent upon the segregation and quality
term commercial price determination. control at the ULB level and its utilization feasibility
also will be plant specific, the commercial terms related
The mentioned price would be for the <50 mm size to transaction of SCF between cement plant and ULBs
material that is suitable for In Line Calciner (ILC). can be negotiated between them on case to case basis.
For Separate Line Calciner (SLC), the same will be However, the initial transportation cost up to 100 km
cheaper and can get negotiated between the RDF will have to be borne by the Cement Plant concerned
operator & the Cement plant. Since nature, quality and beyond 100 kilometers up to 400 km will be borne
and acceptability of SCF by cement plants will be very by concerned ULB.

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9.4 Indicative Cost- Capital and Operation & provided to the facilities varies from INR 984,167 per
Maintenance TPD to 1,709,550 per TPD, the significant range is due to
The detailed analysis clearly shows that there is a huge various factors like size of the RDF, cost of imported or
potential of utilization of RDF in cement plants and domestically manufactured equipment etc. The average
waste to energy plants, but due to lack of standards and of all CAPEX values shared is around INR 13,21,31 per
viable business models the practice is not implemented TPD. If for simplification the TPD CAPEX is divided by
at scale in the country. The standards are recommended 10 years and 300 days of operation, then the cost of
in section 6 and financing needs, gaps and instruments CAPEX per tonne of RDF is around INR 440 while for
for fiscal incentives are detailed in subsequent sections. the lowest CAPEX value it is around INR 330.
The indicative capital investment (Capex) and operation
and maintenance (O&M) cost for setting up 100, 200 The OPEX ranges from INR 1150 per tonne to INR 1870
and 300 Tonne Per Day (TPD) given by RDF processors / per tonne with higher OPEX for less than 20 mm sized
producers are summarized below. RDF and low OPEX for 50 mm sized RDF. The average

The capital costs and operation and maintenance costs Table 20. RDF transportation cost
for co-processing of RDF includes following: Transportation Transportation Cost (Rs./
(i) Capital costs for setting up RDF Plants distance (Km) Km/tonne)
(ii) Capital cost for storage and feeding mechanism 0-30 10 to 12
(retrofitting) of RDF at cement plants,
30-120 7 to 10
(iii) Operational costs for RDF production
(iv) Transportation of RDF to cement plants/ waste to 120-250 4 to 7
energy plant 250-600 3 to 4
(v) Operational cost for using RDF at cement plants / 600 -1300 2.8 to 3.2
waste to energy plant
Source: Indian Waste NAMA Report

The indicative capital and O&M cost is presented in

Table 21. RDF transporting capacity of trucks
Table 18 and Table 19. The entire cost working is based
Truck Type (No. of RDF Quantum in Truck
on theoretical knowledge & discussion with various Wheels) (Tonnes)
experts and is subject to change from time to time.
10 13 to 15

During deliberation the industry expert informed 12 18 to 21

that the CAPEX for setting up MSW to RDF processing 14 21 to 23
plants considering that segregated dry waste is Source: Indian Waste NAMA Report

Table 22: Indicative Cost of Transportation based on low interest rate

Distance in km
INR/ 20 50 100 150 200 300 400 500 700 900 1000
tonne/
km:
0.5 671 701 751 801 851 951 1051 1151 1351 1551 1651
1 691 751 851 951 1051 1251 1451 1651 2051 2451 2651
1.5 711 801 951 1101 1251 1551 1851 2151 2751 3351 3651
2 731 851 1051 1251 1451 1851 2251 2651 3451 4251 4651
2.5 751 901 1151 1401 1651 2151 2651 3151 4151 5151 5651
3 771 951 1251 1531 1851 2451 3051 3651 4851 6051 6651

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 40

value for all OPEX values provided is INR 1486. The truck return is empty or he has load on both sides. In
transport cost varies Rs. 4 per tonne per km and for a general, the payload of SCF / RDF vis-a-vis materials
transport distance of around 300 Kms and reduce to which have Bulk Density ≥ SCF / RDF, depending upon
Rs. 3 for a distance up 600 km and above as indicated the configuration in which it is loaded varies from 0.25
in table 20 below. The cost of transportation decreases to as high as 0.6 or even 0.7.
with increase in distance. The transportation of RDF
of grade I, II or III also being of similar bulk density Thus there is no fix formula which can define freight
therefore can be transported in similar way. of carrying the said commodity. Even most of the
transporters are reluctant to carry SCF / RDF due to
9.5 Financing Gaps its inherent properties like foul smell, moisture etc.
The cost of RDF production and transport in India is Various indicative capacities of truck and prevailing
much higher than the price cement plants are willing rates are given below:
to pay. The transport is a major concern while arriving
at the RDF cost. Transport is a major contributor to this 9.6 Fiscal Incentives for Promoting Usage of RDF
financing gap, therefore, depending on the distance To promote use of RDF or segregated combustible
between the cement plants and the RDF plants (that fraction of MSW, capital investments in following are
could be from 100 km to 1000 km) the financing needs required.
will vary. Further the cost per tonne per km also tends i. Storage facilities for ULBs where preprocessing /
to vary as trucks transporting cement or other products RDF plant is not set up at site.
to cities can carry RDF on their way back or long-term ii. Transportation vehicles (in case transportation is
contracts can enable negotiating prices lower than not out sourced)
existing market rate of INR 3 per km per tonne. The iii. RDF Plant
transportation cost makes lot of difference whether

Figure 17: Potential Cost and Revenue model for Urban Local Bodies

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 41

The above-mentioned capital investments can be 9.7.3 Urban Local Body Sources
supported by the Government through Swachh Bharat User charges (Operation and Maintenance cost)
Mission Funds, 15th Finance Commission, State/ULB MoHUA has drafted the bye laws for levying User
funds as given below. Charges on SWM services under SBM in September
2016. Currently, the charges are commonly applied by
9.7 Financing Instruments Indian municipalities, albeit at very low levels out of
The financial requirements in form of capital which a minimal amount is spent on treating MSW.
investment for setting up RDF Plants and by providing The user charges can be used to pay tipping fees to RDF
output-based market development assistance (OMDA), producer for processing of RDF. The Geocycle suggested
various options of domestic and international financing approach to improve viability of MSW treatment given
opportunities are summarized below. below:

9.7.1 Central Government Sources 9.7.4 Other Sources

The funding support can be extended from the a) Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funding
following schemes of the central government: (Grant)
a) Swachh Bharat Mission – Urban (Grant/ VGF) Under the Companies Act 2013, Indian companies
Till 2nd October’ 2019 the Swachh Bharat Mission with an annual turnover exceeding INR 1000 crore or
is expected to allocate INR 7,366 crore on MSW a profit exceeding 5 crores have to spend at least 2%
management. SBM funds are to be invested in waste of the average net profit in three consecutive years
management activities, with an upper limit of 35% of on CSR activities. The total volume of such funding
total capital cost, which can be combined with other is estimated to reach INR 20,000 crore (PwC and CII
sources of financing. Output based assistance can be 2013). In Varanasi CSR funding from NTPC enabled the
funded during mission period, considering that total reopening of an idling compost plant. A campaign to
value of the support does not exceed 35% of the capital tap CSR funding for RDF plants could unlock significant
cost in value. Urban local bodies can access the funds funding.
for setting up RDF plants.
b) International Support Mechanisms
b) Smart Cities Mission (SCM) (Grant) In addition to domestic sources funding from
Each of 100 selected smart cities is entitled to INR International Support Mechanisms (Grants and Loans)
500 crore from the central government over four can also be explored. This includes market mechanism
years, with state and city governments expected to like Clean Development Mechanism (CDM),
contribute another INR 500 crore. Two fifths of the Multilateral climate finance through Green Climate
central government funding will be provided upfront Fund (GCF), NAMA facility etc.
in the first year, after which yearly instalments will be
disbursed in consecutive years if certain conditions are
met. The mapping of cement plants shows that more
than 50% of Smart Cities are within 200kms range and
therefore SCM funds can be utilised for setting up RDF
Plants.

9.7.2 State Government Sources

Goa cess on packaging (Grant) - A case
The State of Goa has introduced a cess of 0.5% of sale
price or INR 200 per item sold whichever is less, on
the value of goods sold. With this revenue a subsidy of
INR1500 per tonne of MSW processed is granted to a
100 TPD MSW to RDF production plant.

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10. Rollout models

and bid parameters

To expeditiously achieve the objectives of Swachh 10.1.1. Model 1: Standalone RDF unit for an ULB
Bharat Mission, the standards recommended at 5.5 need The ULBs with 5 Lac population generates
to be supported with working operational and financial approximately 200-250 tonnes waste daily. Estimated
models. Such three models are suggested below to generation of segregated combustible fractions (SCF)
facilitate ULBs/ Cement Plants to enter into suitable is up-to 40-50 tonnes in such ULBs. A new RDF plant
agreement and start using RDF as coal replacement in can be set up adjoin the existing waste to compost
suitable proportions processing facility. The RDF processing plant can also
be set up alongside the material recovery facility or
10.1. Operationalization Models dry waste collection centre, where the quantity of
Suitable models as suggested in subsequent paragraphs non-recyclable fraction of dry waste is substantial
can be adopted for preparation and operationalization and uneconomical to transport subsequently to
of MSW based RDF by ULBs. Based on the existing another location for processing of RDF. In case of
scenario in the country, three types of plants can smaller capacities material recovery facilities, the SCF
process MSW to RDF with or without retrofitting component can be transported to nearby RDF plant
requirements as defined in table 23. for economical processing of RDF. Various options for
operationalization are given below:
Table 23: Types of RDF Plants and Retrofitting i. Addition/amendment to the existing contract/
Requirements concession agreement with the waste processing
[Link] RDF plant type Retrofitting facility operator for setting up the RDF plant: The
Requirements RDF unit can be set up within the compost plant
1 Newly constructed RDF No retrofitting premises by existing contractor with rights to use
plants required since they SCF generated out of compost plant/ combustible
will be installed with
suitable technology portion of segregated waste collected by ULB or
to produce RDF as its agency. To achieve financial viability of the
per cement plants
requirements. project, ULB can provide one time grant assistance
2 Already operating There will be a need admissible under SBM i.e. 35% of central grant of
composting plants, or for installing shredders, project as well as any additional fund requirement
composting plants under air-density separators, from its own resources. Agency operating the
development, that would and trommels
be upgraded by adding RDF and in some cases plant can also contribute in capex/ opex as per
production line palletisation units to agreement between agency and ULB. A copy of
ensure that the RDF
produced is suitable for draft agreement is attached at Annexure I. ULB
use in cement plants. will also facilitate an agreement for purchase of
3 Non-operating RDF plants, Depending on the RDF between agency and nearby cement plants,
or RDF plants that currently configuration and ensuring 100% purchase of RDF by cement plants.
operate at low output or state of the plant,
produce RDF of insufficient there will be a need ii. New contract/concession agreement with an
quality, that would be for upgrading or Agency for setting up the RDF plant: A separate
retrofitted for production retrofitting.
of cement grade RDF at full operator or agency can also be engaged through
capacity transparent bidding process for setting up separate
RDF manufacturing unit within or outside the

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premises of compost plant, on the cost sharing Table 24. Financial Sustainability for Standalone/
basis mentioned in para above. A model agreement Cluster Models- IRR Calculations
document is placed at Annexure I. IRR Scenario With or 5 10 Years
iii. Setting up the RDF plant at Material Recovery Without Years
Recyclables
Facility: In the case of setting up RDF unit alongside
the material recovery facility (MRF), an amendment IRR Without No Recyclables - (-) 33%
Grant
to the existing contract of the MRF operator will 10% Recyclables (-) 4% 12%
be required. If the ULB had not set up Material 20% Recyclables 22% 33%
Recovery Facility or dry waste collection center,
30% Recyclables 43% 51%
an agency or operator can be engage through
transparent bidding for setting up and to operate IRR With No Recyclables - (-) 26%
Grant
the proposed facility. This will provide impetus to 10% Recyclables 23% 33%
source segregation, mainstreaming of the informal
20% Recyclables 64% 69%
sector and processing of RDF.
30% Recyclables 101% 104%

In all the three scenario mentioned above, the sale of reaching to the RDF plant, because of various reasons
RDF and recyclables will help to sustain its operation. including availability of MRF facility/ separate agency
for collection and transportation of waste, the private
10.1.2. Model 2: RDF unit for a cluster of Cities/Towns agency may charge tipping fee for SCF processing to
The ULBs with population less than 5 Lac produce sustain plant operation as mentioned above.
smaller quantities of SCF from its waste to compost
facility. Installation of individual RDF units and its Illustrative calculations showing Financial
sustainable O&M is a challenges for smaller cities. Sustainability for above two models:
In this model, it is suggested that a cluster of ULBs The financial viability for different scenarios with or
facilitated by state government, may set up a RDF unit. without government financial assistance and/or with
Depending on the situation this model can be used or without right on recyclables to plant operator
even for ULBs having population more than 5 Lacs. This are worked out for a 100 TPD capacity RDF plant in
purchase-transport model can be exercised as suggested Annexures IV to VII. The financial viability of the RDF
under: facility is worked out in form of Internal Rate of Return
i. A lead ULB takes the initiative for setting up the (IRR) of the facility over a 10 years period. Here, it
plant in consortium with other ULBs by pooling up may be noted that Internal Rate of Return (IRR) is the
their SBM contribution towards central share. State/ interest rate at which the net present value of all the
ULB/ Private operator may also put the balance cash flows i.e. receipt and expenses from a project/
share of project cost and O&M is done by private investment over the designed life of plant equal to
party. Revenue for operation and maintenance may zero. Internal rate of return is often used to evaluate
be generated through sale of RDF to cement plant. the attractiveness viability of a project / investment
The responsibility of SCF transportation to the with and without subsidy. IRR calculation for different
clustered RDF unit vest with participating ULBs/ its scenarios mentioned above is as under:
agencies.
ii. ULBs in partnership with the private sector can set (i) R
 DF Plant with or without Government Grant
the RDF in various financing options: BOT, DBOFT and without Recyclables
etc. The private agency may charge tipping fee The IRR worked out for this scenario (Annexure IV)
for SCF processing and may also generate revenue shows IRR of (-ve) 33% without Government grant
through sale of RDF to cement plants. and (-ve) 26% with Government grant for the given
assumptions of revenue & operational expenses per
In all scenarios mentioned above, the sale of RDF and annum.
also recyclables will help operator to sustain plant’s
operation. However, in case the recyclables are not

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(ii) RDF Plant with or without Government Grant savings from thermal substitution of coal. Calculation
and with 10% Recyclables with set of assumptions for additional revenue required
The IRR worked out for 5 year payback period per cement bag to ensure a payback of additional
scenario (Annexure V) shows IRR of (-ve) 4% without investment for installation of co processing facility to
Government grant and (+ve) 23% with Government use RDF as fuel in Cement clinkers within a period of
grant for the given assumptions of Revenue mix & 4 years are presented in Annexure VIII. The additional
operational expenses per annum. However, in 10 year revenue requirement can be made by increasing per
period payback scenario IRR of (+ve) 12% is achievable bag cost of Rs. 0.41 for a conventional mechanized
without Government grant and (+ve) 33% with hopper system (Approx. cost: 550 Lacs) for low RDF
Government grant. inputs and Rs. 1.85 per bag for advanced automated
feeder systems with capital cost of Rs. 2000 Lacs for
(iii) R
 DF Plant with or without Government Grant utilizing higher quantities of RDF. The Internal Rate
and with 20% Recyclables of Return (IRR) of the facility over a period of 10 years
The IRR worked out for 5 year payback period scenario from the date of commencement of commercial
(Annexure VI) shows IRR of (+ve) 22% without production is 9% without subsidy and 29% with subsidy
Government grant and (+ve) 64% with Government in case of a conventional mechanized hopper system.
grant for the given assumptions of Revenue mix & The payback period is 7.5 years with an average RDF
operational expenses per annum. However, in 10 cost of Rs.1200/-per MT at an average calorific value of
year period scenario shows IRR of (+ve) 33% without 3000Kcal/kg.
Government grant and (+ve) 69% with Government
grant. 10.1.4. Model 3: Cement Industry Model
(iv) RDF Plant with or without Government Grant and Cement companies in India has also taken the initiative
with 30% Recyclables for co-processing of Municipal waste in cement kiln
and have established in-house processing facility for
The IRR worked out for 5 year payback period scenario the SCF and utilizing it in the cement kiln. It may not
(Annexure VII) shows IRR of (+ve) 43% without be prudent to again set up similar facility by ULB and
Government grant and (+ve) 101% with Government instead it would be better to utilize their facility by
grant for the given assumptions of Revenue mix & SCF to them. On the lines of draft agreement placed at
operational expenses per annum. However, in 10 Annexure I, the financial arrangement for lifting and
year period scenario shows IRR of (+ve) 51% without transporting desirable quality of SCF by cement plant
Government grant and (+ve) 104% with Government may be arrived by transparent means.
grant. The Table below summarizes the financial
sustainability of the standalone and cluster based 10.2. Bid Parameters
modes. For implementation of the above models, it is
prudent to say that technically and financially
10.1.3. Requirements for take-off by Cement competent companies (private sector) is involved in
Companies under the standalone and cluster the partnership with ULBs/ States. The Qualifying
approach models Criteria for RDF manufacturers for setting up 300 TPD
The Cement companies based on the proposed Municipal Solid Waste based Refuse Derived Fuel in
standard may takeoff the RDF material of the desired Cement Plants is summarized below:
grade from the RDF manufacturer on agreed cost from A. Technical Capacity: For demonstrating technical
the standalone and cluster approach-based RDF units. capacity and experience (the “Technical
The responsibility of transporting RDF material lies Capacity”), the Bidder has to comply with the
with cement. The cement companies which intend to following conditions:
use the RDF need to invest in setting up RDF feeding a. Should have at least three years of experience (in
mechanism. Substantially, the cost for setting up last 3 years) of handling collection, storage and
auxiliary feeding mechanism will be recovered from the transportation of municipal solid waste (MSW)

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or refuse derive fuel (RDF) on Public Private it should further support its claim for the share in
Partnership (PPP) projects on BOT, BOLT, BOO, work done for that particular work/ contract by
BOOT, DBOOT or Contract Basis or any other similar producing a certificate from the client.
basis, of following capacity:
(i) One project of 300 TPD, or (iii) Certificate(s) from its Statutory Auditors specifying
(ii) Two projects of 150TPD, or Turnover of the Bidder, as at the close of the
(iii) Three projects of 100 TPD. preceding financial year, and also specifying the
methodology adopted for calculating such Turnover
In case, Bidder wishes to form a Consortium, both conforming to the provisions of this Clause.
the Consortium members should individually have
technical experience of handling MSW or RDF of at (iv) Copy of the latest Service Tax Return filed.
least 50 MT per project for a period of two years.
Note: For the purposes qualification, turnover (the
Consortium formed to qualify only for financial criteria “Turnover”) shall mean the sum of annual revenues
will not be eligible. from operations of the projects listed in technical
Note: The entity claiming above experiences should capacity criteria, including tipping fee and user charges
have held, in the company owing the Eligible Project, collected and appropriated during the financial year.
a minimum of 26% (twenty six percent) equity during This shall not include capital grants/capital subsidies
the entire period for which technical experience and income from sources other than projects specified
is being claimed by providing the certificate from under this Clause.
Statutory Auditor.
(v) Certificate(s) from its Statutory Auditors specifying
B. Financial Capacity: the net worth of the Bidder, as at the close of the
a. Turnover: Bidder shall, over the past 3 (Three) preceding financial year, and also specifying that
financial years preceding the Bid Due Date, has an the methodology adopted for calculating such
average annual turnover from operations of similar net worth. For the purposes of Qualification, net
projects as listed in technical capacity of at least Rs. worth (the “Net Worth”) shall mean the sum of
25 cr. (Rupees Twenty-Five Crore) and subscribed and paid up equity and reserves from
b. Net Worth: The Bidder shall have a minimum Net which shall be deducted the sum of revaluation
worth of Rs. 10 cr. (Rupees Ten Crore) at the close of reserves, miscellaneous expenditure not written off
the preceding financial year. and reserves not available for distribution to equity
shareholders.
In case of a Consortium, the combined Technical
Capacity and Financial Capacity of both Consortium
Members shall be considered.

Supporting Documentation
Bidder to enclose all of the following documents in
support of bid:
(i) Certificate(s) from its concerned client(s) in support
of above work undertaken clearly stating quantities
collected and transported/per day, during the past 3
years in respect of the projects whose experience is
claimed.

(ii) In case a particular work/ contract has been jointly

executed by the Bidder (as part of a consortium),

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PART D:
Conclusions and
Recommendations

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 47

11. C
 onclusions and
Recommendations
Solid Recovered Fuel/ RDF is traded like a commodity like the Germany, Netherlands, Poland and Austria have
across borders in developed countries especially Europe. done commendable work as mentioned below:
Many developed countries have been operating co- • Currently Germany imports around 1.6 million
processing plants since 1970. Due to lack of facilities to tonnes, almost 50% thereof from the UK.
absorb the SRF and RDF and concurrent high landfill • Netherlands had replaced more than 80% of fossil
taxes, countries like UK and Ireland export SRF and RDF fuel by RDF.
to Netherlands and Germany. Some of the countries • The current thermal substitution rate of Poland’s

S. Parameters SCF RDF - Grade III RDF - Grade II RDF -Grade I

No
1. Intended Use$ Input material for the For co-processing For direct co- For direct co-processing
Waste to Energy plant directly or after processing in in cement kiln
or RDF pre-processing processing with cement kiln
facility other waste
materials in
cement kiln
Grade III Grade II Grade I
2 Size Anything above <50 mm or < 20 mm depending upon use in ILC or SLC, respectively
400mm has to be
mutually agreed
between Urban Local
Body/ SCF Supplier
and Cement Plants.
3 Ash – maximum <20 %# <15 % <10 % <10 %
permissible
4 Moisture – <35 % < 20% <15 % <10%
maximum
permissible
5 Chlorine –maximum < 1.0 % # < 1.0 % < 0.7 < 0.5
permissible

6 Sulphur – maximum <1.5 % # <1.5 %

permissible
7 * Net Calorific Value > 1500 KCal/kg net >3000 KCal/kg net >3750 KCal/kg net > 4500 KCal/kg net
(NCV) – in Kcal/kg
(Average figure of
every individual
consignment)
8 Any other parameter SCF – any offensive RDF – any offensive RDF – any offensive RDF – any offensive
odour to be odour to be odour to be odour to be controlled.
controlled. ** controlled. controlled.

Note: $ It is up to the ULB, Cement and other industries to mutually decide which standard of RDF need to be produced.
# If the blending process is done in cement plants, the deviations in recommitted limit for ash, chlorine and sulphur content can be
mutually agreed between urban local body /SCF Supplier and cement plants.
* band width of variations acceptable in NCV can be mutually decided between RDF manufacturer and cement plants.
** Since odour is still largely a matter of perception and there is no satisfactory equipment to measure different types of odour, no
quantitative figure has been given.

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cement industry is currently above 60% – with

some cement plants using up to 85% alternative with working operational and financial models.
fuels – out of which 70-80% is of MSW origin. Accordingly, three roll out models along with model
• Lafarge Austria first began to use alternative fuels in tender document and model agreement between ULB/
one of its plant in 1996, since then Austrian cement Cement plant/ RDF plant operator is incorporated as
industry has achieved substitution rates of up to 80 % below:
for fossil fuels. • Model 1: Standalone RDF unit for an ULB
• Model 2: RDF unit on Cluster Approach
India has to go a long way in promoting Thermal • Takeoff by Cement Companies under the standalone
substitution of fossil fuel by Alternative Fuel & Raw and cluster approach models
Material (AFR) such as RDF and Bio-mass etc. Against • Model 3: Cement Industry Model
the global average of 19% of replacement by AFR, the • Model tender document for ULB
European Union have achieved Thermal Substitution • Model Agreement between ULB, Cement Plant and
rate at about 40% (26% from waste + 14 % by Bio-mass). Plant operator
However, in India, the average TSR in cement industry The financial viability for different scenarios with
is estimated at 4%. Recently, the cement industry has or without government financial assistance and/
shown confidence to achieve 25% TSR by 2025. or with or without right on recyclables to plant
operator are worked out for a 100 TPD capacity RDF
In majority of compost plant facilities operated across plant. The financial viability assessment concludes
the country combustible portion often lands in that for achieving the financial sustainability in any
landfills with inerts, thereby, consuming more space of the suggested operational models (Stand alone or
of landfill. This material can be further processed to be clustered), it is recommended to give the right to
used for co-processing and in waste to energy plants. recyclables to the processing agency/ ULB operating
These guidelines provide an insight of various aspects the RDF plant. Without the recyclables, the financial
covering existing policy framework, comparative sustainability cannot be achieved even 50% grant
analysis of potential usage in different industries, (subsidy) is provided to the project. The Table
global scenarios and Indian best practices. It is found below summarizes the financial sustainability of the
that sound policy framework exists for RDF as SWM standalone and cluster-based models:
Rules 2016. These guidelines summarize that usage of
RDF in cement kiln is a win – win situation for ULBs
as well as for cement industry. The existing barriers IRR With or Without 5 Years 10 Years
Scenario Recyclables
and challenges in RDF preparation and usage can be
IRR No Recyclables - (-) 33%
mitigated through capacity building and providing Without
financial incentives to ULBs. The utilisation of RDF is Grant 10% Recyclables (-) 4% 12%
not recommended in Thermal and Iron & Steel industry
20% Recyclables 22% 33%
due to various reasons cited in this document.
30% Recyclables 43% 51%
To provide impetus standards and operational and IRR With No Recyclables - (-) 26%
financial modelling is presented in the guidelines. Grant
10% Recyclables 23% 33%
The following norms for SCF and RDF for utilisation
20% Recyclables 64% 69%
in waste to energy plants and cement industry duly
confirmed by Cement Manufacturing Association and 30% Recyclables 101% 104%
well accepted by all other stakeholders. The standards
are as given below.
Further, insights into the payback period for the
To expeditiously achieve the objectives of Swachh cement industry investing in the auxiliary feeding
Bharat Mission, the standards need to be supported mechanism (100 tpd capacity) by way of thermal

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 49

substitution. It is estimated that the Payback Periods for feeder systems requiring Rs. 20.00 Crore investment
setting up auxiliary feeding mechanism (100 TPD RDF) for utilizing higher quantities of RDF, the cement
in cement plant is 7.25 Years for Rs. 5.5 Cr investment. company producing 1 million MT of cement annually
To achieve a payback period of 4 years, the cement need to enhance its per bag cement cost by Rs.1.85. In
company producing 1 million MT of cement annually addition to above committee has given the following
need to enhance its per bag cement cost by Rs. 0.41 for recommendations on non-technological innovations to
a conventional mechanized hopper system. To achieve promote RDF usage on an affordable, sustainable and
five-year payback for setting up advanced automated scalable basis. The recommendations are listed below:

S. Recommendations Responsibility
No
1. Modification in SWM Rules 2016 MoEF&CC

Existing Clause in section “Duties of the industrial units located within one hundred km from
the RDF and Waste to Energy plants based on solid waste”

All industrial units using fuel and located within 100 km from a solid waste-based RDF plant shall
make arrangements within six months from the date of notification of these rules to replace at
least 5 % of their fuel requirement by RDF so produced.

Modification in Clause in section

“Duties of the industrial units especially Cement Plants and Waste to Energy Plants for
usage of Segregated Combustible Fractions (SCF and/or RDF”

“The cement plants located within 400 km from a solid waste-based RDF plant shall make
necessary arrangements to utilise RDF in the following phase wise manner at price fixed by State
Government: -

Replace at least 6% of fuel intake, within one year from the date of amendment of these rules
(equivalent calorific value/Thermal Substitution Rate) by Municipal Solid Waste based SCF and/or
RDF, subject to the availability of RDF.

Replace at least 10% of fuel intake within two years from the date of amendment of these rules
(equivalent calorific value/Thermal Substitution Rate) by Municipal Solid Waste based SCF and/or
RDF, subject to the availability of RDF.

Replace at least 15% of its fuel intake within three years from the date of amendment of these
rules (equivalent calorific value/Thermal Substitution Rate) by Municipal Solid Waste based SCF
and/or RDF, subject to the availability of RDF.”

The transport cost for SCF/RDF up to 100 km from the cement plant shall be borne by cement
plant, however, beyond 100 km cement plant can transport at its own cost or by ULBs as
mutually agreed upon by the parties.
2. To ensure processing of segregated combustible fractions (SCF) in existing and proposed MSW MoHUA through
plants, ULB shall manage necessary investment either by themselves or through private company State Urban
selected through competitive bidding process on agreed terms and conditions. The Swachh Development
Bharat Mission funds may also be utilised in setting up such plants as VGF/ Grant. Departments/ ULBs

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3. Model Tender Documents and tripartite agreement between urban local bodies, SCF/ RDF ULBs to lead
manufacturer and Cement plants are placed in Annexure I for guidance and uploaded on the conclusion
Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban) website. of agreement
with, SCF/ RDF
manufacturer and
Cement plants.
4. To ensure financial viability of usage of MSW based SCF and RDF, the following guiding principles State Urban
are suggested: Development
Department, ULB
SCF/RDF shall be lifted by Cement Plant /Waste to Energy plant on the terms and conditions and Cement Plants
mutually agreed by the parties on the lines of model agreements.

The Cement Plant will pay for SCF/ RDF to ULB at mutually agreed Rates on the basis of caloric
value of RDF/ SCF and other quality factors on the lines or cost per 1000 Kcal/kg indicated in the
guidelines.
5. To reduce the dependence on cement plants, MoHUA may consider supporting applied Research MoHUA through
and Development for conversion of RDF to liquid/solid/ gas fuel or other innovative options with SBM or may contact
potential replication in the form of 2-3 pilot plants. If successful, this will open up additional Department
avenues for RDF utilisation. of Science and
Technology.
6. To provide impetus for AFR/RDF standardisation mechanism and its utilization, collaborative Ministry of
measures on research and development to be initiated by all cement manufacturers, National Commerce &
Council for Cement and Building Materials (NCBM), Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion Industry and
(DIPP) Ministry of Heavy
Industries and Public
Enterprises
7. Utilization of the RDF is “ensuring environmental sustainability” through reduction in landfill Ministry of Heavy
quantum and greenhouse gases and is aligned with sub-clause (vi) Schedule VII of The Companies Industries & Public
Act, 2013. To encourage the use of RDF, the expenses so incurred for transportation of RDF, Enterprises/ DIPP
beyond 100 km distance and to be borne by industries or ULBs as mutually agreed, as mentioned
under Sl. No. 1 above, may be booked by industries under their Corporate Social Responsibility
(CSR) commitment, as per Section 135 of the Companies Act, 2013.

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Annexure

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Annexure I:

Model Agreement for management of Segregated

Combustible Fraction (SCF) and / Refuse Derived Fuel
(RDF) from Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) through co-
processing in Cement Plants

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DRAFT Agreement
for management of
Segregated Combustible Fraction (SCF) and / Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) from Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) through
co-processing in Cement Plants

Between

First Party -Urban Local Body

And

Second Party - Segregated Combustible Fraction and/ or Refuse Derived Fuel Manufacturer

And

Third Party - Cement Plant

Preamble

I. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), Government of India has launched Swachh Bharat Mission
on 2nd October 2014, with the objectives of modern and scientific Municipal Solid Waste Management among
others.
II. To enhance the progress towards the objective of modern and scientific Municipal Solid Waste Management,
an Expert Committee was constituted by MoHUA in November 2017 to prepare “Standards/Norms for Refuse
Derived Fuel (RDF) from Municipal Solid Waste for its utilization in Cement Kilns, Waste to Energy Plants and
similar other installations”.
III. Based on the recommendations, standards for Segregated Combustible Fractions (SCF) and Refuse Derived Fuel
(RDF) from municipal solid waste shall be notified by Central Pollution Control Board.
IV. This agreement is a tripartite agreement between Urban Local Body, Segregated Combustible Fraction and/ or
Refuse Derived Fuel Manufacturer and Cement Plant for usage of MSW based SCF/ RDF for co-processing.

This Agreement is made and entered into this ____________day of ________2018 by and between:

First Party, which is the urban local body (municipality) of................................. (Town or city), having its office at.........
........................... (hereinafter refer to as “ULB”) of the One Part;

And

Second Party, ………………………a company incorporated under the companies act, 1956 having its registered office
at ……………………………………………….. is a company which is in the business of providing MSW Management
services of collection, transportation, processing and disposal of MSW or Segregated Combustible Fraction (SCF)
and/ or Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) to Municipalities/ULBs, in compliance with SWM Rules, 2016 ............................
(hereinafter refer to as “Segregated Combustible Fraction (SCF) and/ or Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) Manufacturer”).

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Third Party… a Company incorporated under the Indian Companies Act, 1913, having its registered office at .............
........................ and having one of its Cement Plant at ............................(hereinafter refer to as “Cement Company”) of
the other part

AND WHEREAS the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) are responsible for management of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW)
generated within its jurisdiction as per Solid Waste Management Rules 2016. The MSW contains reasonable quantity
of non-recyclable Segregated Combustible Fraction (SCF) containing plastics and other combustible materials
(herein referred to as ‘Segregated Combustible Fraction (SCF) which are not biodegradable and release toxic gases
when they get burnt or dumped in the dump yards / landfills. The SCF can further process by ULB or by third party
for making refuse derived fuel (RDF) of different grades meeting standards / norms notified by CPCB.

AND WHEREAS, Cement Company is in the business of manufacture and sale of different types and grades of
cement and has the capability to dispose the waste materials in an environment friendly manner in the cement
kiln process having high temperature and long residence time (hereinafter referred to as “Co-Processing”) while
simultaneously producing cement of desired quality and meeting the emission norms.

NOW, THEREFORE, to ensure the safe disposal of SCF segregated from the municipal solid waste and/ or RDF all
parties have entered into this Agreement.

1. Term and Validity of the Agreement

The Agreement shall be valid for a period of ____ years from the date of signing and execution of this Agreement.

The Agreement may be amended by written consent of all the Parties to the Agreement. All amendments shall be
documented and allotted a distinctive number and date.

2. Responsibility of the Parties

To deliver key objectives of this Agreement the parties’ responsibilities are summarized as follows (In case ULB is
directly supplying to cement plants the responsibility of SCF/RDF manufacturer shall be fulfilled by ULB).

2.1 Responsibility of ULB

a) To supply Municipal Solid Waste to the agency (Private party / NGO etc.) selected and responsible for MSW
management contract of the city and / or process MSW to SCF/RDF.
b) Review of infrastructure and machinery available at the waste processing facility to ensure SCF/ RDF can be
processed and supplied.
c) To set up a review and monitoring mechanisms to ensure that SCF/ RDF to be supplied meets the standards
notified by CPCB.
d) To pay the operational and maintenance cost in form of tipping fees on per tonne SCF/ RDF produced basis
quoted by the plant operator through competitive process.
e) To bear the cost of transportation of SCF/ RDF to cement plant over 100 Km; upto 100 km to be provided by
Cement manufacturers
f) To provide land to RDF manufacturer to set up the unit
g) to provide segregated minimum assured waste to RDF manufacturer

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2.2 Responsibility of SCF/RDF manufacturer by Private Company / NGOs

a) To manufacture SCF/ RDF as per standards notified by CPCB in line with agreement with ULB meeting all
regulatory requirements and environmental clearances.
b) To pack and label the SCF/ RDF clearing defining the quality and quantity in line with guidance provided at
annexure C.
c) To work jointly with ULB and Cement Plants to finalise the schedule of delivery as per annexure D.
d) To issue the pre-processing certificate to ULB as per annexure F.
e) To undertake the testing of SCF/ RDF as per requirements agreed in this Agreement.
f) To supply minimum assured RDF/SCF to the cement unit

The following specification should be considered for each consignment of SCF/RDF:

Responsibility of Cement Plants

a) To accept and utilise the SCF/ RDF as per agreed schedule of delivery (annexure D) and meet emission norms.
b) To pay the price of SCF/ RDF to ULB as per commercial terms defined in section 4 of this Agreement.
c) To work jointly with ULB / Private Company / NGO as the case may be to finalise the schedule of delivery as per
annexure D.
d) To issue the co-processing certificate to ULB as per annexure G.
e) To undertake the testing of SCF/ RDF as per requirements agreed in this Agreement.
f) To bear the cost of transportation of SCF/ RDF to cement plant up to 100 Km.

3. Provisions for Collection, handling, storage, Segregation & Transportation of segregated Combustible Fraction
(SCF) / Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) from Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) for processing & disposal at Cement
company’s facility located at......................:

(A) Collection, handling, storage and transportation, unloading, storing, pre-processing, and Disposal of Segregated
Combustible Fraction (SCF)/ RDF:
ULB or SCF/ RDF Manufacturer as the case may be (in line with ongoing MSW system) shall be responsible to
collect, handle and store at a designated location the Segregated Combustible Fraction (SCF)/ RDF generated within
its jurisdiction and transporting the same to the Cement Company cement plant located at .....................................
on the basis of basis of commercial terms defined in section 3 of the Agreement and ownership.

ULB or SCF/ RDF Manufacturer as the case may be, at its own cost, arrange to get every consignment of SCF/
RDF weighed at an authorized weighbridge and issue the weighbridge challan to the approved transporter while
dispatching the consignment of SCF/ RDF to the Cement Plant. The quantity of SCF/RDF in any consignment
delivered by the ULB or SCF/ RDF Manufacturer to the Cement Plant shall be determined by the electronic
weighbridge installed at the Cement Plant. All SCF/RDF related reports including inventory list shall be prepared
as per electronic weighbridge records maintained at the Cement Plant, which shall be the conclusive documentary
proof evidencing the actual quantity of SCF/RDF received by them. In the event of any dispute relating to the actual
quantities of SCF /RDF dispatched by the ULB or SCF/ RDF Manufacturer and received by the Third Party, the Parties
hereto shall resolve the same in good faith through discussion on the appropriate actions required to be taken for
verification and correction of any discrepancy.

The ULB at its own cost will make necessary arrangement to transport the material to Cement Plant as per
guidelines in annexure C.

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Cement company shall be responsible for unloading, storing, pre-processing, and Disposal of the Segregated
Combustible Fraction (SCF) /RDF through co-processing in its kiln in the cement plant located in the .........................
......................The protocols for receiving the SCF/RDF are given in Annexure E.

(B) Quality of SCF/ RDF:

The Segregated Combustible Fraction should not contain any of the banned items listed in the Annexure B attached
herein.

Wet fraction of the Municipal Solid Waste comprising kitchen waste and organics, construction and demolition
waste and inert shall not be allowed to be mixed with the Segregated Combustible Fraction that is being sent for
Co-processing.

(C) Quantity and schedule of delivery:

The delivery schedule of SCF /RDF shall be prepared in agreement with ULB, RDF/SCF Manufacturer and Cement
Plants on daily/weekly/fortnightly/monthly basis by all the parties within two months from signing of Agreement
as per guidance given in Annexure D attached herein. A minimum _______tonnes of RDF (Quantity) of mutually
agreed grade is assured to be supplied by the ULB/Private Party.

In case of any change in the mutually agreed delivery schedule by parties, then the affected party will intimate to
the other Parties and all parties will discuss and arrive at a mutually agreed solution to deal the situation.

(D) Refusal:
In case Cement company is in the receipt of consignment which is not matching with specifications given in
Annexure A or contains banned items (as mentioned under Annexure B and/or kitchen wastes or organics other
than the SCF/RDF, Cement company will be entitled to refuse the acceptance of the same and communicate such
rejection within [4] days to ULB and such consignment will be taken back by ULB within [7] days of such intimation
at their own cost and risk to an appropriate place for disposal. The delivery of the SCF/RDF is complete only after
the communication of the acceptance of consignment by cement company to ULB subject to the terms herein
mentioned.

(E) Storage, Handling & Processing of Segregated Combustible Fraction (SCF):

On completion of the Delivery of SCF, Cement company shall be responsible for safe storage, handling and
processing of the SCF/ RDF at its cement plant located at................................................................ The protocols for
receiving the SCF/RDF are given in Annexure E.

(F) Testing of quality Parameters

The following specification should be considered for each consignment of SCF/RDF:

Parameters SCF

Size NA

Moisture (%) As Received Basis …….

CV (Kcal/Kg) As Received Basis ……

S (%) ……

Cl (%) ……

Ash (%) ……

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Each consignment of SCF/RDF received at the …………. Facility of ................, ……………… shall be tested at its
laboratory. Each consignment of SCF /RDF shall be tested by both parties for the parameters stated above and
the reports from both parties shall be shared every fortnight. In case of deviations in reports, both Parties have to
resolve the same in good faith in view of the reasonable proofs.

(G) Certificate of Pre-processing and Co-Processing

The SCF/RDF Manufacturer shall at the beginning of each month during the term of this agreement, issue to the
ULB Certificate of Pre-Processing of MSW to deliver SCF/RDF during the previous month in the format set out in
Annexure F attached to the Agreement.

The Cement Plant shall at the beginning of each month during the term of this agreement, issue to the ULB
Manufacturer of Co-Processing for the SCF/RDF received for Co-Processing during the previous month in the format
set out in Annexure G attached to the Agreement.

4. Commercial terms for the Disposal of Segregated Combustible Fraction (SCF) / RDF:
(A) The capital cost for setting up SCF/ RDF processing plant shall be borne by ULB/ private party as the case be.
(B) The ULB shall pay the operational and maintenance cost in form of tipping fees on per tonne SCF/ RDF
produced basis and quoted by the plant operator through competitive process.
(C) SCF/RDF shall be delivered by ULB at the gate of cement plant located at................................................... . The
transport cost upto 100 KM will be borne by Cement plants. Any taxes if applicable from time to time on the
aforesaid services / transaction shall be to the account of ULB.
(D) The Cement Plant will pay for SCF/ RDF to ULB at mutually agreed rates calculated on the basis of caloric
value and other parameters like pre-processing requirements at cement plant and grades of RDF as defined in
annexure A.

5. Point of Contact
ULB, SCF/RDF Manufacturer and Cement Company shall nominate persons who should act as points of contacts
during the term of the Agreement.

6. Force Majeure.
Neither party shall be considered in default in the performance of its obligation under the Agreement, if such
performance is prevented or delayed on account of war, civil commotion, strike, epidemics, accidents, fires,
unprecedented floods, earth quake or because of promulgation of any law or regulations by the Government,
unforeseen breakdowns, operational and maintenance stoppages at the Second Party’s Cement Plant or on account
of Acts of God.

At the time of occurrence of a force majeure condition, the affected party shall give a notice in writing with
documentary proof within Ten (10) days from the date of occurrence of the force majeure condition indicating the
cause of force majeure condition and the period for which the force majeure condition was likely to subsist. This
agreement shall remain suspended during the period of force majeure. However, if the reason continues more than
ninety (90) days, the parties hereto may mutually agree to modify the terms of the Agreement or terminate the
same. On such termination, ULB shall be obliged to settle all dues to SCF/ RDF manufacturer.

7. Settlements of Disputes
The Parties shall endeavour to settle by mutual consultation any claim, dispute, differences or controversy
(“Dispute”) arising out of, or in relation to the Agreement, including any Dispute with respect to the existence
or validity hereof, the interpretation hereof, the activities performed under the Agreement, or the breach of the
Agreement.

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Any Dispute which cannot be settled within Thirty (30) days of consultation as provided above shall be submitted
to arbitration at the request of a Party (“affected Party”) upon written notice to that effect to the other Party. The
Principal Secretary (UD) of state will be the arbitrator. Further, in case dispute is not resolved, arbitration shall
be conducted at place of ULB (or to be mutually decided by all parties) in accordance with the provisions of the
Arbitration & Conciliation Act, 1996.
The Parties agree that the award passed by the arbitration panel shall be binding upon the Parties, and that the
Parties shall not be entitled to commence or maintain any action in any Court of Law in respect of any matter in
Dispute arising from or in relation to the Agreement, except for the enforcement of an arbitral award or for seeking
injunctive relief or in case of appeal against arbitral awards passed by an arbitration panel pursuant to this Clause.

8. Indemnity
The Parties shall defend, indemnify and save harmless each other and their directors, employees and agents
from and against any and all claims, demands, fines, loses, damages, costs, penalties, expenses, actions, suits or
proceedings, injuries, monetary liability on account of death of any person, cost of response to any governmental
inquiry, liability for loss of or damage to property and reasonable attorney and consulting fees and costs relating
to any of the forgoing resulting from the act or omission, breach or non-conformance by either party with the
provisions contained in the Agreement or any statutory non-compliance. The foregoing indemnification shall not
apply to the extent such claims are the result of the other Party’s gross negligence or willful default.

9. Non-Waiver
Any delay or omission on the part of each Party in exercising any rights provided under applicable laws or under
this Agreement shall not impair such rights or operate as a waiver thereof. The partial exercise of any right
provided under applicable laws or under the Agreement shall not preclude any other or further exercise thereof or
the exercise of any other rights under the Agreement.

10. Relationship
It is understood that this Agreement between the parties shall be on a principle to principle basis. None of the
provisions of this Agreement shall be deemed to constitute a joint venture or a partnership or even agency between
the parties hereto and party shall have any authority to bind the other or will be deemed to be agent of the other
party in any way.

11. Notice
Unless otherwise provided in the Agreement, any notice, report or other communications given or made under
or in connection with the matters contemplated by or arising herein, shall be deemed to have been duly given or
made if sent by personal delivery or by facsimile transmission confirmed by email or upon receipted delivery at the
address of the relevant Party.

12. Applicability
Any Purchase Orders issued for the transaction mentioned herein in this document shall be subject to the terms
herein.

13. Non-Exclusive Transaction

This Agreement is nonexclusive in nature. The parties are free to enter into mutual understanding with any of the
third parties for transaction of similar nature.

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SIGNED AND DELIVERED for and on behalf of

First Party, by the hand of its authorized signatory,
_________________ ______________________

Signature in the presence of:

__________________ ____________________
Signature of Witness 1, (Name of Witness 1)
_________________ _________________________
Signature of Witness 2, (Name of Witness 2)
Second Party, by the hand of its authorized signatory,
________________ ______________________
Signature
in the presence of:
__________________ ____________________
Signature of Witness 1, (Name of Witness 1)

______________ _________________________
Signature of Witness 2, (Name of Witness 2)

SIGNED AND DELIVERED for and on behalf of

Third Party, by the hand of its authorized signatory,

______________ ______________________
Signature
in the presence of:

_______________ _________________________
Signature of Witness 1, (Name of Witness 1)

_________________ _________________________
Signature of Witness 2, (Name of Witness 2)

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Annexure 1A Annexure 1B
Specifications of SCF / RDF (on as received basis) List of Banned Items

Parameters SCF The Segregated Combustible Fraction (SCF) /RDF

dispatched by ULB shall not contain following items
Parameters Values that are listed as banned items for Co-processing.
• Anatomical Hospital Wastes
Size (mm)
• Asbestos-containing Wastes
Moisture (%) • Bio-hazardous Wastes
• Electronic Scrap
NCV (Cal/gm) • Entire Batteries
• Explosives
S (%)
• High-concentration Cyanide Wastes
Cl (%) • Mineral Acids
• Radioactive Wastes
Ash (%) • Unsorted Municipal Garbage

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Annexure 1C accessible.
Guidelines for Packaging, Labelling and Transportation 6. Transport vehicle used for transportation of
of SCF and /or RDF SCF/RDF shall be marked with an emergency
information panel and should be easily identifiable
ULB or SCF/RDF Manufacturer (as the case may be in (number plate)
line the agreement) shall ensure the following: 7. Only the compatible SCF/ RDF should be
transported together
1. Arrange to load the SCF /RDF in trucks which are 8. Transporter / driver shall carry 4 (Four) copies
properly covered with tarpaulin and tied up with of manifest and shall be guided on the proper
ropes to avoid any fall off of the material during movement of the manifest documents.
transportation. 9. Transporter/driver should be provided with
2. Label every vehicle of SCF /RDF as per format relevant information in Form 11 (Transport
below specifying name of waste, quantity of waste, Emergency (TREM) Card) of Hazardous and other
particle size of waste, size of packaging, Type of Wastes (Handling and Transboundary Movement)
waste (“Hazardous/Other Waste”) in bold letters Rules 2016, regarding the Hazardous nature of
both in English and Local Language and with the waste and measures to be taken in case of any
other relevant identification as stipulated under emergency
applicable laws. 10. Logistics should be clearly defined for minimizing
3. Transport Vehicle used for transporting the Occupational Health & safety risks
SCF/RDF should have valid authorization for 11. All relevant legal requirements for transportation
transportation. should be fulfilled
4. Transporter /driver shall be licensed for collection 12. Suitable specific emergency response procedures
and transportation of the SCF/ RDF / crisis management plan and equipment should
5. Transport vehicle should be clean, fit for use and all be in place and truck driver and cleaner should be
safety equipment should be operational and easily trained accordingly.

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Annexure 1D (a) Receive all relevant documents from the ULBs

Quantity & Delivery Schedule Transporter including;
(i) Delivery document
ULB or SCF/RDF Manufacturer (as the case may be (ii) Certificate from ULBs/ SCF and/or RDF
in line with MSW system), during the term of the manufacturer specifying conformance to waste
agreement, shall deliver the following quantities of specifications.
SCF/ RDF to the................ Cement Plant on daily/
weekly/ monthly / yearly basis. (iii) Any other document mutually agreed between the
parties.
Segregated Combustible Fraction (SCF) or / and Refuse
Derived Fuel (RDF): ……….. Metric Tonnes per day/ (b) Cement Plant shall arrange and record the weight of
week/month/annum the Transport vehicle on the weigh bridge installed
at the plant before and after unloading of the SCF/
ULB or SCF/RDF Manufacturer (as the case may RDF at the designated storage area.
be in line with the agreement), during the term
of the agreement, shall deliver the SCF/RDF to the (c) Cement Plant shall make necessary arrangements
Cement Plant on daily/ weekly/monthly basis as per for unloading and storage of the SCF/RDF at the
the mutually agreed delivery schedule. The delivery designated storage area, as per the date on which
schedule of the month will be prepared by the parties the consignment is delivered to the cement plant
through mutual consent and will be finalized before and shall also record the no. of bags, date of delivery,
20th of the preceding month. consignment no., truck no. etc.

In case of any change or modification required in the (d) Cement Plant shall arrange to conduct inspection
agreed monthly delivery schedule of a particular month and sampling of the SCF/RDF as required and
by either party, the same shall be brought to the notice report to the ULB/ SCFOR RDF supplier (as the
of other party at least …….. days in advance or as case may be) whether the SCF/RDF is conforming
mutually agreed. to specifications list in Annexure 1 and Annexure 2
with in …… (..) days of receipt of SCF/RDF.

Annexure 1E (e) Incase SCF/RDF is not properly sealed/ packed as set

Protocols for Receiving of SCF/RDF out in the Agreement, Cement Plant shall inform
the same and both the parties shall discuss and
The following procedures shall be followed when arrive at solution for safe handling and disposal of
receiving SCF/RDF at the Cement Plant: SCF/RDF.
I. Transporter will report to the Cement Plant security
gate for delivery of the SCF/RDF at storage area(s) of (f) Cement Plant shall keep the storage area locked
designated Cement Plants. with appropriate surveillance by the security.
II. Security officer shall inform the concerned officer of
the designated Cement Plant. (g) To attend any emergency situation, the Cement
III. Cement Plant officer will undertake following plant shall maintain a copy of the risk assessment
activities: - and crisis management plan with its security officer
and also with its concerned officer.

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Annexure 1F Annexure 1G
CERTIFICATE OF PRE-PROCESSING CERTIFICATE OF CO-PROCESSING

……………………………………………… (................), This is to certify that we have taken receipt of the

following quantities of......... (Name of the SCF/RDF)
This is to certify that we have supplied the following ................ sent by M/s ................................ for Pre and /
quantity of SCF/RDF to M/s …………………… for Pre Or Co-processing in our Cement Kiln during the period
and / Or Co-processing in the Cement Kiln during the ………..to …………. The same would be safely and
period……… to……….. . The same would be safely and completely disposed off within …. days of receipt and
completely disposed of within ….. days of delivery thereafter will not exist.
Waste Name: .........................................
The average specifications of the supplied SCF /RDF are Quantity (Tons): .....................................
as under:-
1. CV (Kcal/kg) = ………………….
2. Moisture (%) = ………………….. Authorized Signatory
3. Chloride (%) = ………………….
4. Ash (%) = …………………. ...............................

Waste Name: .........................................

Quantity (Tons): .....................................

Plant Head
(Authorized Signatory)
................ ................ …………….

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Annexure II

Emission norms for co-processing of waste / RDF in

cement plants are notified by Ministry of Environment
Forest and Climate Change

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Annexure III

List of operational and under construction

List of operational waste to energy plants
waste to energy plant
S. State Name of the City/ Capacity
No Town (MW)

1 Maharashtra Pune 10
2 Maharashtra Solapur 3
3 New Delhi Okhla 12
4 New Delhi Ghazipur 16
5 Telangana Karimnagar 12
6 Madhya Jabalpur 11.4
Pradesh
7 Delhi Narela- Bawana 24
Total 88.4
Source: SBM data

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List of proposed/ under construction waste to energy

plants [Link]. State City Total
(MW)
[Link]. State City Total
(MW) 34 MP Indore 20
1 Andhra Pradesh Guntur 15 35 MP Gwalior 10
2 Andhra Pradesh Tirupati 6 36 Maharashtra Nagpur 11.5
3 Andhra Pradesh Vizianagaram 4 37 Maharashtra Kalyan-Dombivli NA
4 Andhra Pradesh Tadepalligudam 5 38 Manipur Imphal 2
5 Andhra Pradesh Machilipatnam 4 39 New Delhi Kidwai Nagar 1.6
6 Andhra Pradesh Peddapuram NA 40 Odisha Bhubaneswar & 11.5
Cuttack, Odisha
7 Andhra Pradesh Mandapeta NA
41 Punjab Amritsar 11.5
8 Andhra Pradesh Eleshwaram NA
42 Rajasthan Jaipur 15
9 Andhra Pradesh Samalkot NA
43 Rajasthan Kota 7
10 Andhra Pradesh Narasaraopet NA
44 Rajasthan Jodhpur 3
11 Andhra Pradesh Kadapa 5
45 Tamil Nadu Pallavapuram 4
12 Andhra Pradesh Anantapur 4 &Tambaram
Venkatamangalam
13 Andhra Pradesh Nellore 4
46 Tamil Nadu Rameswaram NA
14 Andhra Pradesh Kurnool 1
47 Telangana Cluster of 18 ULBs 12
15 Andhra Pradesh Vishakhapatnam 5 ( M/ S Shalivahana
16 Bihar Patna 10 MSWM Green
Energy Ltd)
17 Chhattisgarh Durg-Bhilai 5
48 Telangana Cluster of 16 ULBs 12.6
18 Chhattisgarh Raipur 5 (M/s Hemasri Power
Projects Ltd.)
19 Goa Pernem 5 49 Telangana Greater Hyderabad 11
Municipal
20 Gujarat Surat 13.5 Corporation
(RDF Power Projects
21 Haryana Karnal 3.5 Ltd.)
22 Haryana Sonipat 5 50 Telangana Greater Hyderabad 6.6
Municipal
23 Haryana Bandhmadi 10 Corporation
(SELCO)
24 Haryana Faridabad 10
51 UP Kanpur 15
25 Himachal Pradesh Shimla 1.7
52 UP Agra 10
26 Himachal Pradesh Dharamshala NA
53 UP Rampur 8
27 J&K Srinagar 6.5
54 UP Meerut 10
28 Jharkhand Ranchi 11 55 Uttarakhand Roorkee (Cluster of 11
18 ULBs)
29 Jharkhand Dhanbad 12
56 Punjab Amritsar Cluster 12
30 Karnataka Bengaluru (7 plants) 20 (include Amritsar,
Jandiala, Patti,
31 Kerala Kochi 10 Tarantaran, Raja
Sansi, Majitha,
32 MP Bhopal 20 Rayya, Khemkaran)
33 MP Rewa 6 Total 413

Source: SBM Data

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Annexure IV to IX

Financial Sustainability for Standalone & Cluster Model

and Business model of Cement Plant with 100 TPD co-
processing platform along with IRR Calculations

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Annexure IV
IRR CALCULATION FOR 100 TPD RDF PLANT WITHOUT CONSIDERING REVENUE FROM RECYCLABLES
A: BASIS
Assumptions: Total Grade 1 Grade 2 Grade 3
TPD (MT) 100
Days Of Operation In an Year 300

Yearly Production(MT) 30000

Product Mix(%) 40% 30% 30%
Production( MT) 12000 9000 9000
Viable selling price per1000 Kcal/Kg in Rs^ 0.40

calorific value in Kcal 4500 3750 3000

Selling Price( RS/MT) 1800 1500 1200
Revenue (in Rs) 45900000 21600000 13500000 10800000
CAPEX(approx)(in Rs)^ 140,000,000
Subsidy @ 50%( in Rs) 70,000,000
Net Capex(in Rs) 70,000,000
Discounting period(In Years) 10

OPEX (IN Rs/MT)(approx)^ 1200

Transportation cost Rs/ MT for 100 Km 300
distance^
Variables to be addressed for improving the IRR

B: CALCULATION OF Yearly IRR

YEAR Revenue(in Opex(in Rs) Transport cost(in Net Cash Flows IRR IRR with subsidy
Rs) Rs) (in Rs)
0 -140,000,000 -70,000,000
1 45,900,000 36000000 9000000 900000 900000 900000
2 45,900,000 36000000 9000000 900000 900000 900000
3 45,900,000 36000000 9000000 900000 900000 900000
4 45,900,000 36000000 9000000 900000 900000 900000
5 45,900,000 36000000 9000000 900000 900000 900000
6 45,900,000 36000000 9000000 900000 900000 900000
7 45,900,000 36000000 9000000 900000 900000 900000
8 45,900,000 36000000 9000000 900000 900000 900000
9 45,900,000 36000000 9000000 900000 900000 900000
10 45,900,000 36000000 9000000 900000 900000 900000
IRR -33% -26%

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Annexure V
IRR CALCULATION FOR 100 TPD RDF PLANT WITH 10% QUANTITY OF RECYCLABLES

A: BASIS
Assumptions: Total Grade 1 Grade 2
Days Of Operation In an Year 300

Recyclables(MT)* 10
Yearly Production(MT) 3000
Net Selling Price( RS/MT)# 8000
Revenue (in Rs)(i) 24000000
RDF
TPD( MT)* 90
Yearly Production(MT) 27000
Product Mix(%) 40% 30%
Production( MT) 10800 8100
Viable selling price per1000 Kcal/Kg in Rs^ 0.40

calorific value in Kcal 4500 3750

Selling Price( RS/MT) 1800 1500
Revenue (in Rs) 41310000 19440000 12150000
CAPEX(approx)(in Rs)^ 140,000,000
Subsidy @ 50%( in Rs) 70,000,000
Net Capex(in Rs) 70,000,000
Discounting period(In Years) 10

OPEX (IN Rs/MT)(approx)^ 1200

Transportation cost Rs/ MT for 100 Km distance^ 300

* the ratio of Recyclables to RDF is assumed at 10:90

# Net of expenses ,if any for waste segregation etc.
Variables to be addressed for improving the IRR

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B: CALCULATION OF
IRR IN 5 YEARS
YEAR Revenue(in Opex(in Transport cost(in Net Cash Flows( in IRR IRR with subsidy
Rs) Rs) Rs) Rs)
0 -140,000,000 -70,000,000
1 65,310,000 32400000 8100000 24810000 24810000 24810000
2 65,310,000 32400000 8100000 24810000 24810000 24810000
3 65,310,000 32400000 8100000 24810000 24810000 24810000
4 65,310,000 32400000 8100000 24810000 24810000 24810000
5 65,310,000 32400000 8100000 24810000 24810000 24810000

IRR -4% 23%

IRR IN 10 YEARS
YEAR Revenue(in Opex(in Transport cost(in Net Cash Flows( in IRR IRR with
Rs) Rs) Rs) Rs) subsidy
0 -140,000,000 -70,000,000
1 65,310,000 32400000 8100000 24810000 24810000 24810000
2 65,310,000 32400000 8100000 24810000 24810000 24810000
3 65,310,000 32400000 8100000 24810000 24810000 24810000
4 65,310,000 32400000 8100000 24810000 24810000 24810000
5 65,310,000 32400000 8100000 24810000 24810000 24810000
6 65,310,000 32400000 8100000 24810000 24810000 24810000
7 65,310,000 32400000 8100000 24810000 24810000 24810000
8 65,310,000 32400000 8100000 24810000 24810000 24810000
9 65,310,000 32400000 8100000 24810000 24810000 24810000
10 65,310,000 32400000 8100000 24810000 24810000 24810000

IRR 12% 33%

NPV 152,446,710 152,446,710

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Annexure VI
IRR CALCULATION FOR 100 TPD RDF PLANT WITH 20% QUANTITY OF RECYCLABLES

A: BASIS
Assumptions: Total Grade 1 Grade 2 Grade 3
Recyclables(MT)* 20
Yearly Production(MT) 6000
Net Selling Price( RS/MT)# 8000
Revenue (in Rs)(i) 48000000

RDF
TPD( MT) 80
Days Of Operation In an Year 300

Yearly Production(MT) 24000

Product Mix(%) 40% 30% 30%
Production( MT) 9600 7200 7200
Viable selling price per1000 Kcal/ 0.40
Kg in Rs^
calorific value in Kcal 4500 3750 3000
Selling Price( RS/MT) 1800 1500 1200
Revenue (in Rs) 36720000 17280000 10800000 8640000
CAPEX(approx)(in Rs)^ 140,000,000
Subsidy @ 50%( in Rs) 70,000,000
Net Capex(in Rs) 70,000,000
Discounting period(In Years) 10

OPEX (IN Rs/MT)(approx)^ 1200

Transportation cost Rs/ MT for 100 300
Km distance^
* the ratio of Recyclables to RDF is assumed at 20:80
# Net of expenses ,if any for waste segregation etc.
Variables to be addressed for improving the IRR

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IRR IN 5 YEARS

YEAR Revenue(in Opex(in Transport Net Cash Flows( IRR IRR with subsidy
Rs) Rs) cost(in Rs) in Rs)
0 -140,000,000 -70,000,000
1 84,720,000 28800000 7200000 48720000 48720000 48720000
2 84,720,000 28800000 7200000 48720000 48720000 48720000
3 84,720,000 28800000 7200000 48720000 48720000 48720000
4 84,720,000 28800000 7200000 48720000 48720000 48720000
5 84,720,000 28800000 7200000 48720000 48720000 48720000

IRR 22% 64%

IRR IN 10 YEARS

YEAR Revenue(in Opex(in Transport Net Cash Flows( IRR IRR with subsidy
Rs) Rs) cost(in Rs) in Rs)
0 -140,000,000 -70,000,000
1 84,720,000 28800000 7200000 48720000 48720000 48720000
2 84,720,000 28800000 7200000 48720000 48720000 48720000
3 84,720,000 28800000 7200000 48720000 48720000 48720000
4 84,720,000 28800000 7200000 48720000 48720000 48720000
5 84,720,000 28800000 7200000 48720000 48720000 48720000
6 84,720,000 28800000 7200000 48720000 48720000 48720000
7 84,720,000 28800000 7200000 48720000 48720000 48720000
8 84,720,000 28800000 7200000 48720000 48720000 48720000
9 84,720,000 28800000 7200000 48720000 48720000 48720000
10 84,720,000 28800000 7200000 48720000 48720000 48720000

IRR 33% 69%

NPV 299,363,309 299,363,309

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Annexure VII
IRR CALCULATION FOR 100 TPD RDF PLANT WITH 30% QUANTITY OF RECYCLABLES
A: BASIS
Assumptions: Total Grade 1 Grade 2
Recyclables(MT)* 30
Yearly Production(MT) 9000
Net Selling Price( RS/MT)# 8000
Revenue (in Rs)(i) 72000000

RDF
TPD( MT) 70
Days Of Operation In an Year 300

Yearly Production(MT) 21000

Product Mix(%) 40% 30%
Production( MT) 8400 6300
Viable selling price per1000 Kcal/Kg in Rs^ 0.40

calorific value in Kcal 4500 3750

Selling Price( RS/MT) 1800 1500
Revenue (in Rs) 32130000 15120000 9450000
CAPEX(approx)(in Rs)^ 140,000,000
Subsidy @ 50%( in Rs) 70,000,000
Net Capex(in Rs) 70,000,000
Discounting period(In Years) 10

OPEX (IN Rs/MT)(approx)^ 1200

Transportation cost Rs/ MT for 100 Km distance^ 300

* the ratio of Recyclables to RDF is assumed at 20:80

# Net of expenses ,if any for waste segregation etc.
Variables to be addressed for improving the IRR

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B: CALCULATION OF

IRR IN 5 YEARS

YEAR Revenue(in Rs) Opex(in Rs) Transport cost(in Rs) Net Cash IRR IRR with subsidy
Flows( in
Rs)
0 -140,000,000 -70,000,000
1 104,130,000 25200000 6300000 72630000 72630000 72630000
2 104,130,000 25200000 6300000 72630000 72630000 72630000
3 104,130,000 25200000 6300000 72630000 72630000 72630000
4 104,130,000 25200000 6300000 72630000 72630000 72630000
5 104,130,000 25200000 6300000 72630000 72630000 72630000

IRR 43% 101%

IRR IN 10 YEARS

YEAR Revenue(in Rs) Opex(in Rs) Transport cost(in Rs) Net Cash IRR IRR with subsidy
Flows( in
Rs)
0 -140,000,000 -70,000,000
1 104,130,000 25200000 6300000 72630000 72630000 72630000
2 104,130,000 25200000 6300000 72630000 72630000 72630000
3 104,130,000 25200000 6300000 72630000 72630000 72630000
4 104,130,000 25200000 6300000 72630000 72630000 72630000
5 104,130,000 25200000 6300000 72630000 72630000 72630000
6 104,130,000 25200000 6300000 72630000 72630000 72630000
7 104,130,000 25200000 6300000 72630000 72630000 72630000
8 104,130,000 25200000 6300000 72630000 72630000 72630000
9 104,130,000 25200000 6300000 72630000 72630000 72630000
10 104,130,000 25200000 6300000 72630000 72630000 72630000

IRR 51% 104%

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Annexure VIII
Business model of Cement Plant with 100 TPD
co-processing platform

Description Amt.(Lakhs) For a 4 year payback period values

Capital cost for co-processing platform 550

Interest @ 10% on 75% Capital Cost* 54 Additional Revenue required (approx in Rs) 11200000

Depreciation @ 10%** 55 cement to clinker ratio 1:1.35

Operating Cost of co-processing 75 cement production(MT) 1350000

platform***
Cement production in KGS 1350000000
Cost of procurement of RDF**** 360
no. of bags (assuming a bag of 50 kgs) 27000000
Increase in fuel cost due to moisture in 32
RDF Impact per bag of cement(Rs) 0.41

Cost impact due to reduction in 180

production*****
Total Cost 756
Revenue on Cost saving in thermal 788 Assumptions
substitution 1. Operating days is considered as 300 days i.e.
Total Revenue before tax 788 30000Tons per annum
Total profit before tax 32 2. Moisture in RDF is considered as 20%
3. 1 Ton of moisture in RDF will have a loss of 2 Ton of
Income Tax on profit @ 35% 11.2
clinker production
Profit after tax 20.8 4. Cost of clinker is considered as Rs. 1500/Ton
Total Cash in hand(Add Depreciation) 75.8 5. Calorific value of RDF is considered as 3000 Kcal/Kg
Payback Period 7.25 Years

For the first year, This would diminish with the

diminishing balance over the subsequent years

on Straight line method basis

Operation & Maintenance cost of Laboratories , storage,

handling and feeding systems in to the kiln
@Rs1200 per MT( on an assumption of Rs.0.40 per 1000
Kcal/Kg where average energy in RDF is assumed at
3000Kcal/kg)

Assuming capacity utilization of more than 90%. This

will also vary slightly with overall increase in clinker
cost due to increase in energy costs
& other costs over the years

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Annexure IX
IRR CALCULATION FOR CEMENT PLANT WITH
CO PROCESSING PLATFORM OF 100 TPD RDF
A: BASIS
Assumptions: Total
CLINKER TPA( MT) 1000000

Revenue due to cost saving on 78800000

thermal substitution(in Rs)

CAPEX(approx)(in Rs)^ 55,000,000

Subsidy @ 50%( in Rs) 27,500,000
Net Capex(in Rs) 27,500,000
Discounting period(In Years) 10
OPEX (IN Rs/MT)(approx)^ 70100000
(refer cement cost impact sheet)
Variables to be addressed for improving the IRR

B: CALCULATION OF Yearly IRR

YEAR Revenue(in Rs) Opex(in Rs) Net Cash Flows( IRR IRR with subsidy
in Rs)
0 -55,000,000 -27,500,000

1 78,800,000 70100000 8,700,000 8700000 8700000

2 78,800,000 70100000 8,700,000 8700000 8700000

3 78,800,000 70100000 8,700,000 8700000 8700000

4 78,800,000 70100000 8,700,000 8700000 8700000

5 78,800,000 70100000 8,700,000 8700000 8700000

6 78,800,000 70100000 8,700,000 8700000 8700000

7 78,800,000 70100000 8,700,000 8700000 8700000

8 78,800,000 70100000 8,700,000 8700000 8700000

9 78,800,000 70100000 8,700,000 8700000 8700000

10 78,800,000 70100000 8,700,000 8700000 8700000

IRR 9% 29%

NPV 53,457,734 53,457,734

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Annexure X
S. No. Cement Plant S. No. Cement Plant
M/s Ambuja Cements Ltd., M/s Shree Cement Ltd.,
1. Bhatapara, PO – Rawan, 2. AndheriDeori,
Tehsil Baloda Bazar, Post Box No. 33, Bangur Nagar,
Distt. Raipur, Chhattisgarh Beawar, District – Ajmer, Rajasthan – 305901
M/s ACC Ltd., M/s ACC Ltd.,
3. Lakheri Cement Works, 4. Kymore Cement Works,
P.O. Lakheri, P.O. Kymore,
Distt. Bundi (Rajasthan), 323 603 Distt. Katni (MP), 483 880
M/s ACC Ltd., M/s Vasavadatta Cement,
5. Madukkarai Cement Works, 6. Post &Tq- Sedam,
P.O. Madukkarai Distt. Gulbarga Karnataka, 585 222
Distt. Coimbatore
Tamil Nadu-641 105
M/s ACC Ltd., M/s ACC Ltd.,
7. Gagal Cement Works, 8. Bargarh Cement Ltd.,
P.O. Barmana, Cement Nagar, PO Bardol,
Distt. Bilaspur (HP), 174 013 Distt. Bargarh (Orissa), 768 038
M/s Lafarge India (P). Ltd., M/s Ambuja Cements Ltd.,
9. Arasmeta Cement plant, 10. Suli, P.O. Darlaghat,
PO Gopal Nagar, Distt. Solan (HP)
Janjgir, Champa, Chhittisgarh
M/s Lafarge India Ltd., M/s ACC Ltd.,
11. Sonadih Cement Plant , 12. Jamul Cement Works,
PO Reseda, Via Baloda Bazar, Distt. Durg
Distt. Raipur (Chhattisgarh) Chhattisgarh 490 024
M/s Ambuja Cement Ltd., M/s GajAmbuja Cements Ltd.,
13. P.O. Ambujanagar, 14. Tal.-Kodinar,
Tal.-Kodinar, Distt. Junagadh, Distt. Junagadh,
Gujarat – 362715 Gujarat – 362715
M/s Ambuja Cements Ltd., M/s Trinetra Cement Ltd.,
15. P.O. Rabriyawas, 16. Mahi Cement Works, P.O. Walwana,
Teh. Jaitaran, Distt. Pali, Rajasthan Banswara – 327 025, Rajasthan
M/s ACC Ltd., M/s Shree Cement Ltd.,
17. Chanda Cement Works, 18. Village-RAS, Tehsil-Jaitaran,
P.O. Cement Nagar , Distt.-Pali, Rajasthan.
Distt. Chandrapur
Maharashtra 442 502
M/s ACC Ltd., M/s ACC Ltd.,
19. Chaibasa Cement Works, 20. Wadi Cement Works,
P.O. Jhinkpani, Distt. West Singhbhum P.O. Wadi, Distt. Gulbarga
Jharkhand 833 215 Karnataka 585 225
M/s Bharathi Cement Corporation Pvt. Ltd. M/s My Home Industries Limited
21. Nallalingayapalli village, 22. Mellacheruvu (Post &Mandal)
KamalapuramMandal, NalgondaDist - 508246
KadapaDistt. – 516 289, Telangana State
Andhra Pradesh
M/s Anjani Portland Cement Ltd, M/s Kesoram Cement Ltd.,
23. MellacheruvuMandal, 24. Post-Basantnagar,
NalgondaDistt., Karimnagar Dist.- 505 187 (AP)
Telangana State 508246

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M/s Sagar Cement Ltd., M/s Lafarge India Pvt. Ltd.

25. Nalgonda, Telangana 26. Chittor Cement Plant
Chittorgarh, Rajasthan
M/s Kalburgi Cement M/s Dalmia Bharat Cement,
27. (formerly VicatSagar Cement), 28. Ariyalur,
Chhatrasala, Gulbarga, Karnataka Tamilnadu
M/s [Link] Works, M/s Sanghi Cement Ltd.,
29. Muddapur, Bagalkot, 30. Kutch,
Karnataka Gujarat
M/s Chettinad Cement Corporation Ltd., M/s Chettinad Cement Corporation Ltd.,
31. Kallur Works, Sangem K, 32. AriyalurTrichy Road, Keelapur post,
Garagappalli Post, Chandapur (SO), Ariyalur dist-621707,
Chincholi (TK), Gulbarga (DT), Tamilnadu
Karnataka-585 305
M/s Dalmia Cement (Bharat) Ltd., M/s J. K. Cement Works, Mangrol,
33. Dalmiapuram, 34. C/o J.K. Cement Works,
Dist. Tiruchirapalli, Kailash Nagar, Nimbahera,
Tamil Nadu 621651 Distt. Chittorgarh 312617
M/s J. K. Cement Works, M/s Zuari Cement Ltd.,
35. Kailash Nagar, Nimbahera, 36. Krishna Nagar,
Distt. Chittorgarh 312617 Yerraguntla,
KadapaDistt., AP 516 311
M/s Zuari Cement Ltd., M/s Dalla Cement Factory,
37. Sitapuram, Dondapadu, 38. Village – Dalla,
Distt.- Nalgonda, Telangana Distt. – Sonebhadra, UP 231207
M/s Dalmia Cement (Bharat) Ltd., M/s Chettinad Cement Corporation Ltd.,
39. V&P- Chinnakomerla, 40. Rani Meyyammai Nagar, Karikklai PO,
Mandal-Mylavaram, Jammalandhu, Guziliamparai (via),
Distt. Kadapa, AP DindigulDistt., Tamilnadu 624 703
M/s J. K. Lakshmi Cement Ltd., M/s Keerthi Industries Ltd.,
41. Jaykaypuram, 42. Mellacheruvu (V & M),
Distt. Sirohi, Rajasthan 307 01 NalgondaDistt., Telangana 508 246
M/s India Cements Ltd., M/s Chettinad Cement Corporation Ltd., Puliyur
43. Malkapur Village, 44. Cement Works,
TandurMandal, Ranga Reddy Distt., KarurDistt., Tamilnadu
Telangana 501 157
Ultra Tech Cement Ltd., M/s UltraTech Cement Ltd., RajashreeCemeworks,
45. Andhra Pradesh Cement Works, 46. AdityanagarMalkhed Road,
Bhogasamudram, Dist. Gulbarga,
PO: Chukkalur, Mandal:Tadipatri Karnataka 585 292
Distt. Anantapur (AP)
M/s Ultratech Cement Ltd., M/s Ultratech Cement Ltd.
47. Narmada cement- Jafrabad Works, 48. P.O. Mohanpura,
Babarkot, Taluka- Jafrabad, Tehsil Kotputli, Distt. Jaipur,
Distt. Amreli, Gujarat. Rajasthan- 303108
Ultra Tech Cement Ltd., Ultra Tech Cement Ltd.
49. Aditya Cement, 50. P.O. Reddipalayam, Ariyalur,
Adityapuram, P.O. Sawa Distt. Perambalur
Distt. Chittorgarh, Rajasthan -312 612 Tamil Nadu-621 704
Ultra Tech Cement Ltd. UltratechCemenLtd., V ikr Cement Works,
51. Gujarat Cement Works, 52. ikram Nagar, P.O. Khor,
P.O. Kovaya, TalukaRajula, Distt. –Neemuch,
Distt. Amreli, Gujarat-365 541 M.P. – 458 470.
M/s Ultra Tech Cement Ltd., M/s Ultra Tech Cement Ltd.,
53. Rawan Cement Works 54. Hirmi Cement Works,
P.O. Grasim Vihar, Distt. Baloda Bazar – Hirmi, Bhatapara, Distt. Baloda Bazar
Bhatapara, Chhattisgarh – 493196 Chhattisgarh – 493195

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NOTES

Guidelines on Usage of Refuse Derived Fuel in Various Industries