November 2024

Europe: Holcim has secured funding for three separate carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) projects at its cement plants in Europe. The recipient projects are the Go4Zero project at Holcim Belgium's Obourg cement plant in Belgium, the KOdeCO project at Holcim Croatia's Koromačno cement plant in Croatia and the eM-Rhône project at Lafarge Ciments' Le Teil cement plant in France. The Le Teil plant's system will be used to produce e-methanol, while the investment at the Koromačno plant will be part of a package of upgrades to turn the plant carbon neutral.

Alongside on-going projects in Germany and Poland, this will bring Holcim's total number of EU-funded CCUS projects to five. Holcim is committed to US$2.33bn-worth of investments of its own in over 50 carbon capture projects worldwide before 2030.

Holcim's Europe regional head Miljan Gutovic said “It’s exciting to be at the forefront of decarbonising the building sector in Europe. The support we are receiving from the EU Innovation Fund for five of our CCUS projects is a great testament to the strength of our engineering teams, the maturity of our technologies and our advanced partnerships across the value chain. Our robust pipeline of projects positions us as the partner of choice to scale up carbon capture technologies in Europe.”

Greece: The IFESTOS carbon capture project at Titan Group's Kamari cement plant was among eight CO₂ emissions-reducing projects chosen for funding following the latest EU Innovation Fund call for projects. IFESTOS consists of a planned 1.9Mt/yr carbon capture installation at the Kamari plant. Titan Group says that it has concluded necessary memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with suppliers. The IFESTOS project will receive a share of a funding pot worth a total Euro3.6bn.

Chair Marcel Cobuz said "We are truly excited that the European Commission has chosen to support our large-scale, highly innovative project. IFESTOS is a cornerstone of our accelerated decarbonisation roadmap to net-zero. In line with EU climate policy, together with our technology partners, we are pioneering an innovative carbon capture project, the largest in Europe, with a highly positive impact. The group has strong capabilities and is committed to executing this project fast over the next few years, decarbonising production and offering green growth opportunities to our customers in Europe. We embrace the opportunity to widely share our knowledge and expertise and promote green cements as modern materials for infrastructure and housing.”

Germany: The EU Innovation Fund has granted funding to the GeZero carbon capture project at Heidelberg Materials' Geseke cement plant in North Rhine-Westphalia. The project consists of a 700,000t/yr carbon capture system and an oxyfuel kiln upgrade. A captive solar power plant will provide energy for the new systems. CO₂ storage partner Wintershall Dea will receive purified liquefied CO₂ from the capture system via its Wilhelmshaven distribution hub for storage under the North Sea.

Heidelberg Materials Germany general manager Christian Knell said “This project sets an important milestone for the cement industry and for effective carbon management in Germany. We are now counting on the tailwind of Germany’s future Carbon Management Strategy and the regulatory framework to come.”

CEO Dominik von Achten added “With GeZero, we will once again show how Heidelberg Materials’ pioneering spirit is paving the way for the decarbonisation of our industry. We will be the first to realise a full CCS chain for the capture, transport and permanent storage of all CO₂ emissions from an inland location in Germany. I appreciate the support of the EU Innovation Fund, which expresses both an important recognition and the required backing from the political side.”

US: Brimstone has announced a new method of ordinary Portland cement (OPC) with a negative carbon footprint. Brimstone's method uses carbon-free calcium silicate in the place of limestone. Its calcination also produces magnesium compounds, which naturally sequester further CO₂ from the atmosphere. The technology will now proceed to the testing phase at an upcoming pilot plant in Reno, Nevada, before proceeding to commercial-scale production. Brimstone will then begin to market its OPC, along with supplementary cementitious materials produced by its process.

Brimstone's chief technology officer Hugo Leandri said “By delivering the exact same cement, we clear away the main obstacles to adoption, offering an opportunity to dramatically speed up the path to net-zero construction. The same buildings, bridges and roads being built today can be built tomorrow, without carbon."

Bangladesh: The government inaugurated the Dasherkandi sewage works, the largest sewage treatment plant in South Asia, in Dhaka on 13 July 2023. United News of Bangladesh has reported that the plant will incinerate dried sewage sludge to produce 16,400t/yr of ash. The plant will supply this to the local cement industry for use as a raw material.

The Dasherkandi sewage works is one of five planned new sewage plants expected to process 100% of Dhaka's sewage by 2030.

Japan: Taiheiyo Cement has concluded an agreement to dispose of waste produced by any natural disasters that should occur in Hidaka City and Saitama Prefecture. Under the agreement, Taiheiyo Cement will establish a disposal system with realises the potential of disaster waste as a resource. This will work alongside another recycling programme for conventional wastes. The cement producer says that this will help to build a safe and secure community.

Azerbaijan: Total national cement production was 1.76Mt during the first half of 2023, according to the State Statistics Committee. This corresponds to a 1.9% year-on-year rise from first-half 2022 levels. Clinker production rose more sharply, by 16% to 1.82Mt, while ready-mix concrete production rose by 15% to 1.77Mt.

US: A fire broke out in a building at Buzzi subsidiary Buzzi Unicem USA's Stockertown cement plant on the evening of 13 July 2023. Local fire crews arrived at the plant in Northampton County, Pennsylvania, at 19:18. The Express-Times newspaper has reported that the fire affected an electrical room, and that parties present at the scene requested that power to at least a portion of the facility be cut.

India: UltraTech Cement has announced the inauguration of its expanded Sonar Bangla II cement plant. Reuters has reported that the expansion has more than doubled the plant's capacity to 1.3Mt/yr. It increases UltraTech Cement's total installed capacity by 0.5% to 131Mt/yr.

China: China National Building Material expects its net profit to drop by 80% year-on-year during the first half of 2023. AAStocks Financial News has reported that the group partly attributed the anticipated drop to a fall in its cement prices, as well as its commercial concrete prices.