Energy Conservation Opportunities in Pulp & Paper Industry

Industrial sector is the largest user of energy in India and in many parts of the world. The pulp and paper industry accounted for 6% of total global industrial energy consumption, being the fourth largest energy consumer worldwide. For India, energy audit of a paper carton manufacturing unit was earlier reported with the following results. The specific electrical and thermal energy consumption was estimated as 91.85 kWh/ton and 1619 MJ/ton paper respectively. Annual energy saving potential was found to be 5.9% of the total annual energy consumption. With a view to identifying energy conservation and CO₂ mitigation opportunities in writing, tissue, and craft paper production, this article presents energy auditing of a paper industry (Orient Paper Mills) in Amlai, Shahdol, Madhya Pradesh, India. The specific energy consumption of the typical paper industry in India was evaluated as 34.3 GJ per ton paper and specific CO₂ emissions as 3.4 tons CO₂ per ton paper. Some energy conservation opportunities for this industry were identified with significant energy saving (nearly 3.5%) and money saving potential with payback periods not exceeding 2 years in general.