Aluminium dross recycling company “RUNAYA” conferred with Global WasteMet award by Energy and Environment Foundation

One of India’s fastest-growing manufacturing start-ups, Runaya, made public on 21^st December that it has been conferred with the Global WasteMet Award by the Energy and Environment Foundation. The company own the award under the prestigious ‘Platinum’ category for its success in setting up an integrated environmental project to process aluminium dross and convert it to value-added products.

Runaya uses ZERO WASTE dross processing technology patented by Bahraini company, TAHA International Corporation.

Runaya won the award as a tribute to its contribution in bringing about a quantum leap in processing aluminium dross with a positive impact on the environment and helping to improve resource management.

The Runaya aluminium dross recycling project has reached its final stage of operation in Jharsuguda, Odisha state, in eastern India.

Aluminium dross is a by-product of the aluminium smelting process that usually ends up in landfills in India, and it is estimated that around 80,000 tonnes of slag enter landfills each year.  Traditionally, the recovery of the aluminium metal has been performed using the rotary salt furnace (RSF) process. In the RSF process, an oil or gas fired furnace is charged with the dross, and a salt flux (up to 50% of the dross weight) is added.. Using salt, however, comes with enormous disadvantages such as its cost, environmental and safety hazards. Runaya, through the patented technology that it obtained from TAHA International Corporation (Bahrain) under a license, is however able to provide an environmentally friendly, sustainable and cost-effective solution, including the recovery of aluminium and the conversion of the remaining waste into value-added products. The project adequately addresses one of the biggest challenges facing the aluminium industry, which relates to the handling, evacuation, treatment and disposal of dross in an environmentally friendly manner.

Annanya Agarwal, CEO & Co-Founder, Runaya received the award and said, “We would like to thank the Energy and Environment Foundation and members of the jury for this prestigious award. At Runaya, we leverage technology and global partnerships to implement sustainable practices in the resources and manufacturing sector and help reduce mining waste going into landfills. This award is a testament to our commitment to bringing global best practices into India and creates a positive environmental impact.”

In turn, CEO of TAHA International Corporation, Frank Pollmann said: “We at TAHA would like to congratulate our Indian licensee RUNAYA for receiving this prestigious award. We are delighted to see that our sustainable process technology perfected over the past 15 years is so well received in India. Given the current focus on Green Aluminium TAHA is negotiating with major aluminium companies worldwide to implement our proven technology”