The Italian glass industry, first in Europe for container production, presents data on the decarbonization of production. Some plants are already ahead. However, the absence of incentive measures, introduced in other countries, weighs heavily. The scenario was presented in Rome on April 9, 2024, by Assovetro, the association of glass industry manufacturers affiliated with Confindustria.
The Made in Italy glass strategy for decarbonization
In the two-year period 2021-2022 the Italian glass industry has made significant investments to reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions.
The strategy is essentially based on
- electrification, increased use of renewable energy shares, new fuels
- stringent greenhouse gas reduction plans for production plants through new technological solutions
- product interventions, such as weight reduction of bottles and jars and a greater use of glass cullet in production. The latter allowed a reduction of 1,042,295 tons of CO2 equivalent emissions in 2022.
Support for the transition, the example of Germany and USA
The association of glass industry manufacturers emphasizes that the energy transition in such an energy-intensive sector requires political and economic support that elsewhere is already a reality.
Technological solutions for an energy paradigm shift exist but it is not enough, it is necessary to define a regulatory framework clear and lasting, with adequate incentive systems that make investments sustainable for companies.
Other countries, to facilitate the energy transition of their energy-intensive industry, have enacted economic support plans: the Germany for example, with ‘climate protection contracts’, and the USA with subsidies of 6 billion dollars.
Glass companies are doing their part. Our sustainability report tells us that 68% of the sample examined has formalized a decarbonization roadmap for 2030 and 2050 and many glassworks are already implementing significant changes both in industrial processes and products’, declares Marco Ravasi, President of Assovetro.
The numbers of glass decarbonization
The path of the Italian glass industry towards a more sustainable production system is illustrated by Assovetro with the following data:
– the share of renewable energy, self-produced or purchased, represented over 11% in 2022 (+1% compared to the previous year) of total consumption
– the weight of bottles of wine has decreased on average by 12% in the last 10 years. This results in lower consumption of raw materials, energy and, consequently, generates lower CO2 emissions,
– the use of cullet of glass has so far reached an average of 85/87% in the production of dark bottles (with a saving of 0.67 tons of CO2 for each ton of glass produced). If all Italian furnaces producing clear bottles (those that use a smaller amount of cullet) switched to dark glass, CO2 emissions would decrease by about 8%.
The 2023 Sustainability Report shows how the glass industry has also reduced, between 2016 and 2022, emissions of
– nitrogen oxides (NOX), -41%,
– sulfur oxides (SOX)), -49%
– dust, -53%.
Water consumption have also significantly decreased, thanks to an important contribution from recovery. -39% between 2016 and 2022, -7.2% between 2021 and 2022.
Energy transition, the best examples
Three Italian industries glass industries are cited as examples in reducing their carbon footprint.
1) Local biomass and district heating in Fossalta di Portogruaro
Zignago Vetro – 3 billion containers per year – has long established strategic goals for 2030 and adopted a true Decarbonization Plan.
A key initiative of this path is the Fossalta di Portogruaro plant powered by renewable energy produced by the Zignago Power biomass plant, supplying almost 100% of the electricity consumed by the glassworks and covering about 38% of the Group's electricity needs.
The thermoelectric power plant of Zignago Power in Fossalta di Portogruaro uses waste biomass fuels (pruning residues, sawmill waste, etc.) from short supply chains. It also recovers some of the thermal energy from combustion fumes both to produce hot water and to feed a district heating network.
2) Gas preheating and lightweight bottles from Verallia
Verallia (10,000 employees and 34 production plants) is carrying out the innovative HEATOX project (gas and oxygen preheating), where methane and oxygen pass through a heat exchanger applied to the furnace. Thus, the gases enter the furnace already preheated and require fewer calories to reach flame temperature. This results in about a 5% reduction in “scope 1” CO2 emissions generated by gas combustion in the melting activity.
The group also works on super lightweight products with a lower carbon footprint, such as the Bordolese Air 300gr, the lightest Bordolese bottle ever. A project that uses advanced modeling tools to predict the mechanical resistance of the bottle.
3) O-I, the oxygen that cuts consumption and emissions
The plant O-I in Villotta di Chions has launched a project using oxygen in the two melting furnaces to increase energy efficiency. This new ‘oxy-fuel’ technology has led to a substantial reduction in energy consumption (-38%) and emissions (-80%).
This is added The 'circular' reuse of flue gas heat, which preheats waste glass from separate collections before introducing it into the melting furnaces.
Less consumption, less glass packaging
The consumption crisis, triggered by the geopolitical crisis and inflation, has also penalized the production of glass containers, excellent packaging for food and beverages.
Production Hollow glass production in 2023 actually decreased both for bottles (-5.3%) and for jars (-0.9%).
Import and export Bottle imports and exports have also decreased, by -11.6% and -18.3% respectively. For jars, while export fell by -30%, import increased by +5.5%.
Marta Strinati
Professional journalist since January 1995, she has worked for newspapers (Il Messaggero, Paese Sera, La Stampa) and magazines (NumeroUno, Il Salvagente). Author of journalistic investigations on food, she published the book 'Reading labels to know what we eat'.
