Just a short time after the Ministry of Science & Technology (MST) set national standards on thermopower ash & slag used as surface leveling materials TCVN 12249:2018, MOC released technical guidance on using the material as an alternative for traditional materials.

Analysts commented that the release of the national standards and technical guidance will open up a new period of using ash and slag.

The PM’s Decision 1696 on solutions to re-use ash and slag and gypsum as alternative building materials was released in 2014. However, for a long time, the use has not occurred because of the lack of a legal framework on the issue.

A report said that 23 coal-fired thermopower plants discharge 12.2 million tons of ash and slag each year. Of this, 60 percent comes from plants in the north, 21 percent from the central region and 19 percent from the south. However, only 30 percent of this amount was consumed in 2017.

The thermopower plants belonging to the Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) alone produce 8.1 million tons of ash and slag a year, which amounts to 67 percent of total amount of ash and slag. EVN has vowed to consume all the ash and slag left at dumping grounds.

Reports show that the consumption of ash and slag of EVN’s power plants in the north has been going well. Pha Lai, Uong Bi, Ninh Binh and Thai Binh Plants all have signed contracts with partners on the consumption of ash and slag. Meanwhile, the consumption level in the south proves to be more modest.

According to GENCO1, which is running several coal-fired power plants, Uong Bi, Nghi Son 1, Quang Ninh, Duyen Hai 1 and Duyen Hai 3 have consumed 492,000 cubic meters out of 833,671 cubic meters of ash and slag produced in the first quarter of 2019.

This included 108,000 cubic meters of furnace slag and 484,000 cubic meters of fly ash. About 341,000 cubic meters of ash and slag have been put into dumping grounds.

While government officials believe that the consumption of ash and slag would go well following the release of the legal regulations, the representatives of power plants said it would take much more time to accelerate the consumption of the outstanding ash and slag.

“I am afraid that the approved projects will have to be submitted for approval once again and we need to prove that our plan fits the new standards,” a representative said, adding that the procedures will cause delays.

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Mai Lan