The current situation and way out of overcapacity in the lime industry
The lime industry is facing a severe challenge of overcapacity. In recent years, with the popularization of lime production technology and the concentrated release of regional production capacity, the market supply and demand relationship has gradually become imbalanced.
Data shows that in 2022, China's lime production reached 310 million tons, and although demand continued to grow during the same period, the growth rate was slower than the capacity expansion rate, leading to low price competition and inventory backlog in some regions. The tightening of environmental policies has further exacerbated industry differentiation - in regions such as Beijing Tianjin Hebei and the Yangtze River Delta, due to environmental production restrictions, some enterprises have less than 300 effective production days per year, while small and medium-sized production capacity is the first to bear the brunt of market fluctuations due to outdated technology and high costs.
Cracking the dilemma requires a multi pronged approach. Technological upgrading is the core breakthrough point, and the popularization of energy-saving processes such as suspension calcination and oxygen enriched combustion can reduce unit energy consumption by more than 18%. The dual chamber vertical kiln technology further compresses process energy consumption to below 130kgce/t, significantly improving production efficiency. Product high-end is another key path, with the growth rate of high value-added products such as nanoscale lime and desulfurization specific lime exceeding 25%. Cross border applications such as lithium negative electrode material coating agents and CO ₂ adsorbents are opening up a market space of billions.
The industry needs to strengthen self-discipline, optimize layout through capacity replacement, regional coordination, and other methods to avoid vicious competition. At the same time, explore circular economy models, use steel slag and carbide slag to replace limestone raw materials, and reduce resource dependence. Only by driving innovation and green transformation can the lime industry break through the shackles of overcapacity and achieve high-quality development.
