Displaying items by tag: Germany
Cemex and Orcan Energy extend waste heat recovery partnership
15 February 2024Mexico/Germany: Cemex and waste heat recovery (WHR) systems developer Orcan Energy plan to scale up WHR technologies supplied by Orcan Energy at multiple Cemex sites globally. This new multi-site portfolio approach extends an existing partnership, through which the companies trialled Orcan’s systems for electricity generation at Cemex Deutschland’s Rüdersdorf cement plant in Germany.
Cemex’s Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia regional president Sergio Menéndez said “We already have an initial collaboration with Orcan. Based on the modularity of their solution, Orcan offers the flexibility of both installation and contracts. Thanks to this crucial flexibility, we can adapt to any upcoming changes in our plants. The approach enables us to reduce carbon emissions right now without limiting ourselves in implementing any future technologies such as carbon capture, utilisation and storage. This partnership will help us achieve our sustainability targets and contribute to our aim to use all available heat.”
Orcan Energy’s chief executive officer Andreas Sichert said “We are looking forward to entering this large-scale decarbonisation partnership with Cemex after our initial cooperation in Germany. This step is a testament to Cemex’s forward-looking strategy and the company’s commitment to achieving net zero. For Orcan Energy, this is another milestone in scaling the business internationally with global enterprises. We are proud to be the partner of choice for the cement industry. Our large footprint across the industry shows the economic capability and the technical excellence of our modular and flexible solution, especially in view of uncertain future economic and regulative developments.”
Germany: Orcan Energy has expanded its Kiel plant in order to produce its waste heat recovery (WHR) systems entirely on-site. The expansion aims to meet increased global demand, in line with Orcan Energy's strategy to help reduce CO2 emissions from cement and other industries.
Orcan Energy CEO Andreas Sichert said "The decision to expand our in-house production capacity in Kiel reflects our commitment to growth and innovation in Germany. With roots in Munich and a range of global projects, we can promote sustainable change around the world from Germany. I look forward to working together with my colleagues in Kiel to contribute to a profitable and sustainable energy future."
Heidelberg Materials is a Climate A-Lister
06 February 2024Germany: Sustainability disclosure organisation CDP has named Heidelberg Materials on its Climate A List 2024 for its corporate transparency and climate performance. The group also received an A- rating for Water Security. Heidelberg Materials’ product and process innovation efforts toward CO2 emissions reduction include carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) projects aimed at capturing 10Mt of CO2 by 2030.
Heidelberg Materials’ chief sustainability officer Nicola Kimm said "We are honoured to be included in CDP’s Climate A List and to be recognised for our efforts in decarbonisation. This also demonstrates our leadership in the industry – both in breakthrough technologies such as CCUS, and when it comes to sustainable products. We will continue to drive the transition to low-carbon construction."
Germany: Heidelberg Materials has launched EvoBuild, a new brand for its range of low-carbon and circular products. It intends to apply globally consistent criteria and tiering for its sustainable products and aims to set new standards for decarbonised products. All countries in which the company is present will gradually integrate their sustainable products into the EvoBuild portfolio.
Dominik von Achten, chair of the managing board of Heidelberg Materials, said “After rolling out our new corporate brand Heidelberg Materials in more than 20 countries, harmonising our strong sustainable product portfolio on a global level is the next logical and important step.” He continued, “We recently introduced our EvoZero brand for the world’s first carbon captured net-zero cement. Now, we are adding EvoBuild to the Evo brand family with a new framework for all products that are characterised by their special contribution to carbon reduction and circularity. This also reflects the strong focus of our business activities on sustainable solutions for our customers.” Nicola Kimm, the chief sustainability officer at Heidelberg Materials added that creating the brand was, “an important step towards achieving one of our key targets on the way to net zero as we aim to generate 50% of our revenue with sustainable products by 2030.”
Products in the EvoBuild range will be available in all business lines and are either low-carbon (cement and concrete), circular (concrete) or feature a combination of both attributes. Low-carbon products must provide a CO₂ reduction of at least 30% compared to the reference value. Circular products must contain at least 30% recycled aggregates, or they must reduce material requirements by at least 30%.
Germany: Heidelberg Materials will stop producing clinker at its 700,000t/yr Hanover cement plant in Lower Saxony later in 2024, and transition the plant to grinding-only. The producer took the decision following a ‘significant drop’ in its cement sales, amid local low construction activity and a market shift towards lower-cement materials. Nonetheless, it intend to raise its capacity utilisation at its 1Mt/yr Ennigerloh, 900,000t/yr Geseke and 400,000t/yr Paderborn cement plants in neighbouring North Rhine-Westphalia. These will supply clinker to the Hanover grinding plant in future. Heidelberg Materials says that the plant's strategic location will ensure its continued importance in regional cement supply. Part of the 120-strong workforce at the Hanover plant will remain at the new grinding plant. The company will collaborate with the works council to find ‘acceptable solutions’ for the remainder of the team, possibly including intra-group transfers to other divisions and locations.
The Calix consortium’s on-going LEILAC 2 carbon capture project will now move from the Hanover plant to another Heidelberg Materials plant. Australia-based Calix is collaborating with Heidelberg Materials to identify a suitable new site as quickly as possible.
Göktuğ Aktaş appointed as Director - Africa, Mediterranean and West Asia at Heidelberg Materials
24 January 2024Germany: Heidelberg Materials has appointed Göktuğ Aktaş as its Director - Africa, Mediterranean and West Asia. He previously worked as the Performance Manager (Northern and Eastern Europe-Central Asia) for the group from late 2018. Prior to this he worked for Türkiye-based Akçansa from 2011 in quality management roles becoming Country Production and Quality Manager (RMC & Aggregates) in 2017. Aktaş is a graduate in science and civil engineering from the Istanbul Technical University and the University of Buffalo in the US. He also holds an administration in business administration (MBA) qualification from Istanbul University.
TopWerk Group endorses Partanna Global's carbon-negative binder
23 January 2024Germany/US: Concrete production equipment supplier TopWerk Group has formally endorsed Partanna Global's carbon-negative binder as a replacement for cement in the production of concrete using its equipment. Partanna plans to install TopWerk equipment at its four upcoming production plants, under an exclusive three-year agreement. The endorsement is intended to help shift TopWerk's global customers from using cement to using Partanna Global’s binder.
Partanna Global CEO Rick Fox said “TopWerk's endorsement of Partanna represents a major vote of confidence in our technology from one of the most respected names in global construction. We’re humbled and proud that one of the world’s leading concrete machinery producers has given us their backing. We hope this signals to the industry that Portland cement is no longer the only solution in town, and that the days of burning rocks are fast coming to an end.”
TopWerk CEO Robert Gruss said "We believe our exclusive partner Partanna has come up with a truly impressive solution that can contribute to putting this polluting practice to an end. The company’s carbon negative binder is one of the most exciting innovations we have witnessed in our industry for decades. It is the most advanced alternative binder solution in the market and the only credibly carbon negative solution that has the potential to scale globally. Over the last two years, we have rigorously tested their formula and have validated its application as a direct replacement solution for Portland cement. In many ways, their binder actually performs better than the legacy solution.”
The endorsement follows Saudi Arabia-based property developer ROSHN's announcement of an upcoming carbon-negative concrete plant that will use Partanna Global's technology earlier in January 2024.
Neustark announces upcoming rapid expansion in Europe
19 January 2024Switzerland: Carbon capture and storage (CCS) equipment developer and supplier Neustark says it plans to more than double the number of its CO2 storage sites in Austria, France, Germany, Switzerland and the UK to 34 from 14. Neustark’s process turns mineralised captured CO2 and existing mineral waste streams into useful limestone. Building materials producers lease Neustark’s storage sites to produce reduced-CO2 alternatives such as recycled concrete. The sites currently have a total storage capacity of 5000t. Existing customers include Holcim.
Neustark CEO Johannes Tiefenthaler said “Neustark is scaling up rapidly, and we’re well on track to achieve our aim of permanently removing 1Mt of CO₂ by 2030. Our global goal is a series of reliable, region-specific CCS facilities that can be replicated anywhere, offering immediate sustainability benefits to local supply chains.”
Holcim announces over 15 upcoming acquisitions in 2024
18 January 2024Switzerland: Holcim says that it aims to conclude 15 - 20 new acquisitions in 2024, and potentially ‘many more.’ The value of individual deals ranges from US$5.78 – 115m, but might possibly exceed US$230m. Holcim says that it is focussing on growing its construction waste recycling business in Belgium, France, Germany and the UK, as well as its aggregates business in Eastern Europe.
Germany: Rohrdorfer Zement has fired up a pilot clay tempering unit at its Rohrdorf cement plant in Bavaria. The project has received Euro8.65m in funding from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action and the EU. It is one of a number of industrial projects under the EU’s Euro800bn NextGenerationEU post-Covid-19 economic recovery instrument. Sources of heat for the pilot unit at the Rohrdorf cement plant include waste heat from the plant’s clinker line. If the pilot succeeds, the introduction of tempered clay into cement production at the site will follow. This will entail the construction of an on-site full-scale clay tempering plant. Rohrdorfer Zement says that this would reduce the plant’s CO2 emissions by 16 – 18%, or by 30% if it achieves carbon neutral clay tempering through the use of green hydrogen.
Rohrdorfer’s dedicated Net Zero Emissions Labs team is working to turn the Rohrdorf cement plant carbon neutral by 2038. Other initiatives include the installation of carbon capture systems at the Rohrdorf plant and another in Austria, and participation in the H2-Reallabor Burghausen hydrogen partnership.
Regarding the latest pilot, Rohrdorf Net Zero Emissions Labs project leader Helmut Leibinger said “As a cement component, tempered clays make a significant contribution to CO2 mitigation. With the pilot project of process-integrated tempered clay, we are taking not just a step in our decarbonisation roadmap, but a leap.”