Technology
There is no finishing line in the race of Excellence

TNPL is an acknowledged leader in the technology of manufacture of paper from bagasse – the sugar cane residue.  Started with an initial capacity of 90,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) on a single Paper Machine., the Mill doubled the capacity to 180,000 tonnes per annum in the year 1995 by addition of one more Paper Machine.  Under the Mill Development Plan (MDP) completed during May 2008, the pulp production capacity has been increased from 520 tpd to 720 tpd.  The pulp being produced by TNPL, in post-MDP is Elemental Chlorine Free (ECF).   Along with this, the upgrade of the Paper Machines has resulted in reaching the paper production capacity to 2,45,000 tpa.  TNPL has completed the Mill Expansion Plan (MEP) in December 2010 to raise the mill capacity to 400,000 tpa.

Mill Expansion Plan (MEP):

The implementation of Mill Expansion Plan (MEP) was completed and commercial production started  on 25th January 2011.

The implementation of Mill Expansion Plan (MEP) was completed and commercial production started  on 25th January 2011.
The state-of-the-art Paper Machine 3 (PM-3) supplied by Voith Paper, Germany has a capacity to produce 155,000 tpa of Printing and Writing paper.  The PM3 has a deckle width of 5.45 Mtr and operating speed of 1100 m/m.  As part of Mill Expansion Plan, Backward integration of Chemical Bagasse pulping line has been implemented to have better pulp quality with reduction in water and bleach chemical consumption.  The chemical bagasse pulp line is capable of producing 500 tpd of pulp and is the world’s largest single line for bagasse.
OTHER KEY PROJECTS UNDER IMPLEMENTATION:
 
Revamping of Steam and Power system:
The Company has proposed to replace the 3 old low pressure Boilers of 60 tph each installed during 1984 with a new energy efficient and environmental friendly Circulation Fluidised Bed Combustion (CFBC) Boiler of 125 tph steam generation capacity of 105 ata pressure rating. In addition, the Company has proposed to replace the two old Turbo Generator sets witha new TG set of 41 MW capacity to augment the in-house power generation for meeting the additional power requirement. The total capital outlay is Rs 135 crore. The order for main plant and machinery has been placed and civil works are in progress. The project is targeted to be completed by June  2012.
 
De-inking Plant :
 
To meet the additional pulp requirement in the post- MEP, the Company has initiated steps to install a state- of-the-art Deinking plant of capacity 300 tpd, at an estimated capital outlay of Rs.174 Crore. The order for main plant and machinery has been placed.  The project is targeted to be completed during second quarter of 2012.

On-site Precipitated Calcium Carbonate (PCC) plant
 
Following the switching over to alkaline sizing in the Stock preparation, h the paper machines started using Precipitated Calcium Carbonate (PCC) as the wet end filler. In view of the huge requirement of PCC ,the Company has proposed to install an on-site PCC plant of 60,000 tpa capacity on Built, Own and Operate (BOO) basis in the Mill premises. The plant will be established by OMYA International AG, Switzerland at a capital outlay of Rs.30 crore. The project is under Environmental clearance and expected to be commissioned during next financial year. 

On-site Wet Ground Calcium Carbonate (WGCC) plant

While the company continues to use PCC, trials were conducted for increasing the ash content in the pape.  Towards this, a combination of GCC and PCC was tried out, to improve the surface properties of paper in an economical way.  As the results are found encouraging the company has been using GCC, which is currently being purchased in powder form.  Considering the huge quantity of GCC requirement the company has initiated action for establishing an on-site GCC plant, in the same lines of PCC plant.

Lime  Sludge  &  Fly  Ash  Management  (600  tpd Cement Plant)

The lime sludge generation from the Recovery Cycle and the Fly Ash generated from the power boilers are issues of concern in solid waste management of the mill. An innovative solution of combining these two wastes and converting them into high grade cement has been drawn through installation of a 600 tpd cement manufacturing plant abutting the Mill premises. Environmental Clearance and the Consent to Establish were received from Department of MOEF / GoT and theTamil Nadu Pollution Control Board.  This project is undertaken at a capital outlay of Rs.68 crores. The civil works commenced during September 2010. This project is expected to be commissioned during first quarter of 2012.

 

 
TNPL - Maker of bagasse based eco-friendly paper