# How to Finance an Energy-Efficient Glass Furnace in Firozabad

Canonical: https://senseible.earth/climate-intelligence/finance-glass-furnace-firozabad

Published 2026-10-13.

Firozabad's bangles, lamps and glassware come out of furnaces that never cool. A pot furnace or tank furnace that goes cold can crack, so units run on gas day and night whatever the order book says. That makes the cluster unusually exposed to the price and supply of one fuel.

In 2026 that exposure turned into losses. Outlook Business reported that gas supplies to Firozabad units were cut by more than 20 percent from early March, and output fell by nearly 40 percent. The question owners now ask is how to pay for furnaces that need less gas for the same glass.

## How the cluster got here

Firozabad sits inside the Taj Trapezium Zone, where a Supreme Court order in the 1990s required coal-based industries to switch to cleaner fuel or move. At the time, small units had no gas-fired pot furnace that worked for them. TERI, with Swiss development support, developed gas-based, energy-efficient designs for pot furnaces and the smaller pakai bhattis used in bangle making.

A government cluster report cites a UNIDO expert study finding that the Firozabad small-scale cluster used 107 percent more energy than the international level, and lists efficient 12-pot furnaces and improved auxiliary furnaces among the upgrades needed. Those studies are older, but the gap they describe is why the 2026 gas cut hurt so much.

## What green finance can pay for

- **Furnace replacement or rebuild** with recuperators or regenerators that preheat combustion air using exhaust heat.
- **Better insulation and burner control** on existing furnaces.
- **Gas metering per furnace,** so each saving can be shown.
- **Rooftop solar** for the electrical loads around the furnaces.

SIDBI's energy efficiency product pairs an audit and a bankable project report with a concessional loan. Commercial banks lend against the same report. The Centre for the Development of Glass Industry in Firozabad, set up with UNDP, UNIDO and the Uttar Pradesh government, has offered a gas-fired pilot plant and technical help; ask whether its services are available for your project.

## What the lender needs to see

1. **Gas bills for the past year,** in standard cubic metres by month.
2. **Output for the same months,** in tonnes of glass or pieces, so gas per unit can be calculated.
3. **The furnace supplier's specification** and the expected gas saving, with how it will be measured.

A unit that can show gas per tonne before and after a rebuild has a stronger loan file and a better answer when buyers ask about energy. For the loan process, read [how to get green loans in India using carbon data](https://senseible.earth/climate-intelligence/how-to-get-green-loans-india-carbon-data), and see the [PNG emission factor](https://senseible.earth/emission-factors/png) Senseible applies to gas bills.

Confirm current eligibility and terms with the lender before you apply.

## Related guides

- [green loan for a ceramic factory in Morbi](https://senseible.earth/climate-intelligence/green-loan-ceramic-factory-morbi)
- [ADEETIE scheme eligibility and application](https://senseible.earth/climate-intelligence/adeetie-scheme)
- [green loan for a steel business in Johannesburg](https://senseible.earth/climate-intelligence/green-loan-steel-business-johannesburg)
- [green loan for a garment factory in Dhaka](https://senseible.earth/climate-intelligence/green-loan-garment-factory-dhaka)