Depth: Who will come to pay for the emission reduction in the winter?

The “chaotic and disorderly” of the steel desulfurization market has made the government that promises to reduce emissions “faceless”.

At present, large-scale iron and steel enterprises have invested heavily in desulfurization equipment, while the majority of small and medium-sized enterprises generally hold the attitude of “paying for things”, and there is no supporting desulfurization equipment at all. Some local governments have not strictly regulated the emissions of steel companies for the sake of economic development.

In actual production, energy conservation can reduce operating costs and have economic benefits, while emission reductions often only increase costs. This reality forces companies to make choices that make the government embarrassed. China's steel industry is experiencing another winter after the 2008 international financial crisis, and the national energy conservation and emission reduction requirements have placed double pressure on steel companies.

The sulfur dioxide emissions in the steel industry account for about 10% of China's total emissions, which is the second largest source of emissions after thermal power generation. However, in a recent interview, the reporter found that under the impact of the economic crisis, domestic steel companies generally lacked sufficient power to reduce emissions. If there is no mandatory policy, the comprehensive desulfurization of the steel industry will face certain difficulties.

It is understood that at present, China's large iron and steel enterprises have invested heavily in desulfurization equipment, while the majority of small and medium-sized enterprises generally hold the attitude of "paying for things", and there is no supporting desulfurization equipment at all. An industry insider who did not want to be named told this reporter that China's steel desulfurization market is “chaotic and disorderly”, and many local governments have not strictly regulated the emissions of steel companies for economic development.

A good news is that on September 7, the State Council promulgated the "Twelfth Five-Year Plan for Comprehensive Energy Conservation and Emission Reduction". It is proposed that “the steel industry will fully implement the flue gas desulfurization of the sintering machine, and the new sintering machine will be equipped with desulfurization and denitration facilities”.

This news also challenges the steel industry. At present, there are about 1,100 sintering machines in the country, which will be eliminated under the industrial policy of 90 square meters. The 503 sintering machines of 90 square meters and above must be equipped with desulfurization facilities.

Lin Boqiang, director of the China Energy Economic Research Center of Xiamen University, said in an interview: "SMEs who are not equipped with desulfurization equipment are required to "go out".

For a long time, China's steel industry has been facing problems such as overcapacity, mergers and acquisitions, and structural adjustment. Energy conservation and emission reduction may become another opportunity for the steel industry to improve barriers to entry and reshuffle.

Tangled Ma Steel

"Our desulfurization equipment can be said to have only social benefits and no economic benefits." This is the most widely heard sentence by reporters when they interviewed the sintering desulfurization equipment at Maanshan Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. (Ma Steel). The helplessness and uneasiness of the time.

Ma On Shan, named after the terrain resembles a saddle. The second ironmaking plant of Maanshan Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. is located at the foot of Maanshan.

On September 20th, the reporter found in this interview that there is no noise or no smoke, and the towering chimney does not see a trace of smoke. The scene in front of people makes people even suspect that the equipment is running.

All of this depends on the Meros (maximum reduction of sintering emissions) sintering exhaust gas purification system introduced by Ma Steel from Siemens VAI.

In June 2009, Meros was put into production in Maanshan Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. passed the acceptance test in July of the following year. After more than two years of operation, at present, the sulfur dioxide emission concentration is stable below 200mg/Nm3, the dust emission concentration reaches 10mg/Nm3, and the annual emission reduction of sulfur dioxide is 3,500 tons. According to the person in charge of Maanshan Iron & Steel Co., Ltd., this system has been monitored by the government website since the second half of last year. The simultaneous operation rate of the desulfurization system and the sintering machine is stable at about 95%, the desulfurization efficiency is about 80%, and the comprehensive desulfurization efficiency is 76%. The national comprehensive desulfurization rate must meet the requirements of 70%.

This system is also the first application case for this technology in countries outside Europe.

Because it is the first case, Meros' import range is larger than that of conventional projects. This system costs 120 million yuan and requires more than 30 million yuan in operating costs each year. Even for large steel companies like Ma Steel, there is currently only one water testing Siemens technology in the six sintering machines.

Ding Yi, deputy general manager of Maanshan Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. bluntly said: "Good is good, but such high investment is difficult to popularize."

According to the reporter's understanding, although Meros is expensive, it is not the most expensive steel desulfurization equipment in China. The total investment of WISCO flue gas desulfurization project using ammonium sulphate method is 138 million yuan; Taigang Sintering Flue Gas Activated Carbon Desulfurization and Denitrification The investment in acid integration project is over 300 million yuan. Even for cheaper equipment, an initial investment of tens of millions of yuan is still needed.

Energy saving and emission reduction treatment are different

Since no mandatory measures have been taken, many steel companies in China have not made significant efforts to reduce emissions. The data show that the sintering machines equipped with desulfurization facilities in China are less than 15%. Even if it is equipped with desulfurization equipment, some of them are also dealing with things - the above people have to check the equipment before opening, usually just posing, the equipment synchronization utilization is extremely low.

"Although it is required to network with the government, how much is the real effective online synchronization data? A lot of data is distorted. I can only say this step." An outspoken person in the industry left an infinite imagination.

It is understood that there are not many enterprises that can realize real online emissions data in China. The relevant report of the Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Center of the Metallurgical Industry Planning and Research Institute shows that only a small number of devices can achieve 80% synchronous operation rate in Chinese enterprises.

Li Xinchuang, dean of the Metallurgical Industry Planning and Research Institute, pointed out in an interview that the pressure on energy conservation and emission reduction in the steel industry is very high, and many enterprises have not met the national first and second level emission standards.

Under the policy of the central government to change the mode of economic growth, energy conservation and emission reduction has become an important issue for enterprises. However, in actual production, energy conservation and emission reduction have been completely different treatments - energy-saving measures have reduced operating costs, economic benefits, and high enthusiasm; and emission reduction measures often only increase costs and are difficult to promote.

Especially now, Chinese steel companies are experiencing another cold winter.

China's steel industry is different from monopoly industries such as petroleum and petrochemicals. It is a completely market-oriented industry and sensitive to fluctuations in the international financial crisis.

Before the economic crisis, the steel industry was called a “printing machine” with a profit margin of over 7%. However, in 2011, especially in the first seven months of this year, the sales profit margin of 77 large and medium-sized steel companies in China was only 3.08%, even lower than bank interest.

Ding Yi analyzed with reporters: "The global economic recession has led to a decline in foreign demand, while domestic demand is also insufficient. Only the demand for construction of reservoirs and affordable housing is strong. Other domestic industrial materials demand is all down, and raw material prices are rising all the way. Steel companies The days are not good."

An industry insider with many years of experience told reporters that due to the serious competition of homogenization, let alone the general products, now even the high-end products are meager profits. "Unless there are products that others can't produce, they will not earn any money."

In this context, an unavoidable question is: In the midst of the economic crisis, who will pay for the reduction of Chinese steel companies in the winter?

Urgent subsidy policy introduced

"Enterprises invest hundreds of millions of dollars, and the country is indifferent, obviously not suitable." A boss of a steel company told reporters. This also represents the views of the vast majority of people in the industry. In the recent industry conferences held many times, the participants repeatedly called on relevant state departments to issue relevant subsidy policies. At present, the industry has proposed subsidies such as reduction of sewage charges.

China's steel production capacity accounts for 80% of the world's total, and it is dominated by medium and low-level plants with large emissions, and pollutant emissions are considerable. But so far no incentive mechanism has been formed to encourage enterprises to desulfurize.

"We hope to have more policies that encourage the enthusiasm of enterprises." Wu Chaogang, assistant director of Maanshan Iron and Steel Co., Ltd., told reporters.

Li Xinchuang also said that the state should take into account the current situation of China's steel industry's competitive incentives and poor performance, and give appropriate preferential policies in reducing emissions to encourage the mobilization of enterprises.

"Can't do or not do the same, do well and do the same. I hope to be a guiding and encouraging policy." Li Xinchuang said.

Lin Boqiang pointed out that the subsidy of thermal power plants comes from the state's restriction mechanism on electricity prices, but China's steel market is completely open, and it can get out of the poverty reduction through price increases.

“Competitive industries say subsidies are not reliable.” Lin Boqiang said that the competitiveness of steel companies includes the internalization of environmental costs, and the desulfurization equipment on steel plants can enter the cost of enterprises and can increase prices.

However, due to the different supervision of large enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises, small and medium-sized private steel enterprises that do not have supporting desulfurization equipment have a low burden and low cost, and the profits are good. Once desulfurization costs enter the price, large companies will face further increased cost gaps.

In this regard, Lin Boqiang believes that the steel industry should focus on three major reductions: improve environmental standards, mandatory emission reductions and strict supervision. Through these three requirements, all companies are reduced by the same standard.

In an interview with reporters, the general manager of the Siemens VAI Ironmaking and Steelmaking Equipment Department, Yu Yuyou, directed the issue of fair competition. “Enterprises are not playing fair competition on the same platform.” He repeatedly stressed that China should consider two factors when regulating the market for sintering desulfurization. One is to select reliable technology and improve the technical threshold. The second is to strictly enforce the system and strictly enforce environmental emissions. standard.

“It is not enough for steel companies to rely solely on self-discipline to reduce emissions. The relevant state departments should introduce support policies to regulate the market and give fairer treatment to enterprises with more investment and social responsibility.” Yu Yuyou said.

Siemens Metallurgical Technology Sales Manager Yan Guoliang told reporters that the European steel industry has strict emission control regulations and severe penalties. All enterprises will strictly support emission reduction equipment, so everyone's cost is similar; while domestic is the difference between “having” and “no”, The profit has a great impact.

"Everyone is starting at the same starting line, there will be no problem."

Li Xinchuang pointed out that the excessive backward production capacity of the steel industry has caused great environmental pressure. “The most prominent gap between SMEs and large enterprises in China's steel industry is that the gap in pollution emissions is too large. It is the responsibility of all enterprises to meet national first- and second-level emission standards. Large enterprises must set an example, and SMEs must work harder. Solve emissions problems."

It is not only the steel industry that faces the dilemma of reducing emissions. Although the results of the 2010 and 11th Five-Year Plan for the reduction of total sulfur dioxide emissions of the five major power group companies have reached the standard, if the desulfurization technology during the 12th Five-Year Plan period has not made a major breakthrough, the difficulty in reducing emissions in the power industry will be very large. Data source / Ministry of Environmental Protection

"Twelfth Five-Year Plan" focuses on promoting industrial energy conservation

The "Twelfth Five-Year Plan for Energy Conservation and Emission Reduction" proposes to focus on promoting energy conservation and emission reduction in the power, coal, steel, non-ferrous metals, petroleum and petrochemical, chemical, building materials, paper, textile, printing and dyeing, food processing industries, especially Promote technological progress and strengthen supervision and management.

Develop cogeneration and promote distributed energy. Launch a smart grid pilot. Promote the clean utilization of coal, increase the proportion of raw coal into the wash, and accelerate the development and utilization of coalbed methane.

Implement energy efficiency improvement programs for the industrial and information industries. Promote energy-saving transformation of information data centers, communication equipment rooms and base stations. The implementation of total emissions of major pollutants in the power, steel, paper, printing and dyeing industries.

The newly-built coal-fired units are all equipped with desulfurization and denitration facilities. The existing coal-fired units must be equipped with desulfurization facilities. If the discharges are not stable, the gas-fired desulfurization facilities should be cancelled according to regulations. All coal-fired units with a capacity of 300,000 kilowatts and above will be equipped with denitration facilities.

The steel industry fully implements the flue gas desulfurization of the sintering machine, and the new sintering machine is equipped with a desulfurization and denitration facility.

Desulfurization reforms were implemented in key industries such as petroleum and petrochemical, non-ferrous metals and building materials.

The new dry process cement kiln implements low-nitrogen combustion technology transformation and supports the construction of denitration facilities.