Distillery Ash Can Become a Profit Centre for Mills

-Says Dr. Sangeeta Shrivastava at IFGE Webinar

Pune | SugarToday

For Godavari Biorefineries, waste is not a liability to be disposed of. It is a resource stream to be monetized. Dr. Sangeeta Shrivastava made that point while presenting the company’s biorefinery approach at the Indian Federation of Green Energy National Webinar on Potash Recovery from Distillery Fly Ash: Technology, Sustainability and Scale.

Her message was simple. With integrated operations and the right recovery technology, distillery ash can shift from a compliance cost to a revenue line.

The Integrated Biorefinery Model
Dr. Shrivastava said the sugar-ethanol sector is moving toward highly integrated biorefineries. One feedstock now supports multiple outputs. Sugar, ethanol, renewable power, Bio-CNG, green hydrogen, green methanol, specialty chemicals and potash can all come from the same cane-based ecosystem.

That integration improves resource use, raises operating efficiency and strengthens margins. In this model, every stream is looked at for value creation, not just sugar and ethanol.

Waste to Wealth at Godavari Biorefineries
The company’s focus areas include Zero Liquid Discharge compliance, resource recovery, circular economy integration and sustainability-led operations. The intent is to reframe waste management. Instead of treating it only as a regulatory requirement, it becomes part of the business plan.

Potash from Spentwash Ash
The opportunity Dr. Shrivastava highlighted is potash recovery from spentwash incinerator ash. The ash carries significant potassium. With the right process, it can be converted into fertilizer-grade products.

The benefits are clear. Import substitution, lower disposal costs, new revenue and better sustainability performance. That creates both an economic and strategic case for mills to invest.

How It Works
The recovery route described involves three core steps. Aqueous extraction pulls potassium into solution. Clarification removes impurities. Crystallization using Multi-Effect Evaporators produces the final salt.

The output can meet FCO-grade Sulphate of Potash standards. Godavari’s work has shown purity levels up to 99 percent, which makes it suitable for premium fertilizer use.

From Cost Centre to Profit Centre
Historically, ash has been a disposal burden. Recovery changes that equation. Dr. Shrivastava said potash recovery plants can achieve payback in about 3.5 to 4 years, which is a strong signal for commercial adoption.

The national scale is also relevant. India generates nearly 5,000 tonnes per day of potassium-rich fly ash from distilleries. If captured, that could yield more than 2.5 lakh tonnes of potash annually and close part of the import gap.

Barriers to Scale
She was candid about the challenges. Capital investment is high. Mills need advanced separation and purification systems. Supply chains and logistics have to be sorted. And the market for recovered potash must be developed with consistent quality and farmer awareness.

Her recommendations were to strengthen policy support, accelerate technology adoption, push integrated biorefinery models, and scale waste valorization across the sector.

Closing
Dr. Shrivastava concluded that potash recovery can fundamentally change distillery economics. Waste management can move from compliance to strategy. For the sugar-ethanol industry, that means new revenue, lower environmental load and stronger competitiveness, with potash as a core part of India’s circular bioeconomy.