Steklarna Hrastnik continues to invest in green technologies
Steklarna Hrastnik is dedicated to premium quality based on sustainability and social responsibility in all areas of operation. The success of environmentally responsible companies is not only measured through business results, but mainly using sustainable indicators that reaffirm their excellence where the environment is concerned. Despite increasing its capacities in the past year, Steklarna Hrastnik has further improved its energy efficiency and reduced its environmental footprint by implementing a range of innovative projects and investments in the best production technology available while transitioning to industry 4.0. The company continues to make similar investments, as evident from the planned investments in a new furnace and a solar power plant.
By investing in innovative solutions to make the most of waste heat, replace fossil fuels with environmentally friendly alternatives, improve the utilisation of melting furnaces and other solutions, in 2018 Steklarna Hrastnik reduced the consumption of energy per ton of melted glass by 10%, CO2 emissions by 6%, and NOx per ton of melted glass by 40%, as well as using 50% less water than in 2017.
Environmental policy is one of the cornerstones of all of Steklarna Hrastnik’s operations. “As all our employees share a dedication to environmental responsibility, we are constantly working to improve our processes and use the best technologies available in order to minimise our negative impact on the environment as much as possible,” said Peter Čas, General Director of Steklarna Hrastnik, highlighting the focus of employees on environmental responsibility. Thanks to its environmentally responsible approach, the company is also building a competitive advantage, since it operates on the global market of companies and brands that are sustainably oriented and expects the same from their partners.
New solutions for reducing the environmental footprint
When introducing new technologies, Steklarna Hrastnik always considers their environmental impact. “At the same time, we are constantly working with our partners to find new solutions. We are careful about using natural resources and making their consumption more efficient. We have recently installed a solar power plant, which will be connected to a hydrogen production facility – a part of a pilot plant for the production of hydrogen, a clean, carbon-free energy product. This will enable us to develop new technologies for melting glass using hydrogen, leading to the decarbonisation of fuel and thus reducing Steklarna Hrastnik’s carbon footprint,” said Peter Čas, General Director of Steklarna Hrastnik, about the efforts and plans for environmental sustainability. He added, “The new furnace, which will increase our current capacity by 17%, from 240 tons to 280 tons of daily production, will also be based on the most up-to-date technology and will be ready to be fuelled partly by hydrogen.” Steklarna Hrastnik is also preparing to build another 400 kW solar power plant, which will enable the production of 3% of the energy consumed by the company.
Find out more about our environmentally responsible approach in our 2018 Sustainability Report.