Nestlé Japan’s Himeji factory’s natural gas cogeneration system

Nestlé Japan's Himeji factory's natural gas cogeneration system has won the 9th New Energy Award in recognition of its high degree of innovation. The Himeji plant is used to produce soluble coffee cryogenically and has high energy efficiency (92%, whereas conventional plants have 70-80% efficiency) and low CO2 emissions (reduced by up to 32 000 tons/year compared with the former plant). Features of the 6750-kW power-generating plant include a suction air-cooling system using the vaporization heat of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) stored in a satellite until use and effective use of exhaust heat from the heat recovery boiler. Nestlé Japan plans to set up a similar plant at its Shimada factory and has also developed an HCFC-free cascade freezing system.