Displaying items by tag: carbon capture
France: Vicat says that it will commission its planned 100% carbon capture system at its Montalieu-Vercieu cement plant ‘before 2030,’ and possibly as soon as 2027. The Les Echos newspaper has reported that the system will have a capture capacity of 1Mt/yr of CO2, although the plant’s emissions are currently 800,000t/yr. Captured CO2 may then be transported by barge, train or pipeline to the port of Fos-sur-Mer.
When commissioned, the upcoming carbon capture system will reduce the CO2 emissions of cement produced at the Montalieu-Vercieu plant by 94% to 40kg/t.
France: Lafarge France has signed a memorandum of understanding with green hydrocarbons specialist Axens, utilities provider EDF and research firm IFP Energies Nouvelles for a synthetic fuel production trial. The partners will build a plant to produce kerosene using captured CO2 from a carbon capture installation at Lafarge France's Saint-Pierre-La-Cour cement plant. The project, called Take Kair, aims to produce fuel for use by aviation companies, including Air France-KLM Group.
Holcim France president François Petry said "The decarbonisation of our processes and products is at the heart of our strategic commitment to reach Net Zero by 2050. Beyond the modernisation of our production tools, we work on all industrial and technological levers to reduce our emissions, and thus decarbonise our industry. With the Take Kair project, we are taking a decisive step in the capture and management of our residual CO2 emissions and participate with our partners in the emergence of an innovative and sustainable sector serving the country's mobility needs."
Lafarge France, a subsidiary of Switzerland-based Holcim, announced a Euro40m investment in the 1.6Mt/yr Saint-Pierre-La-Cour cement plant to achieve carbon neutral cement production there in March 2022.
UK lime sector commits to net zero by 2040
22 June 2023UK: Mineral Products Association Lime (MPA Lime), the body representing the UK lime sector, has launched the Net Negative 2040 Roadmap. The association said that the roadmap sets out the strategy for its to 'go beyond net zero' by 2040. The industry will rely on the deployment of fuel switching, carbon capture, renewable energy sources and green transport technologies, among other approaches. It called on the government to support its aims through the implementation of carbon accounting, subsidisation of renewables and decarbonisation technologies, the development of green hydrogen infrastructure, ensuring that UK lime can remain competitive in the UK and overseas markets.
MPA Lime director Mike Haynes said “Each lever will contribute to decarbonisation – many initiatives are happening already or will come on stream this decade." He added "The combination of using biomass fuels with carbon capture and lime product carbonation will result in removal of 250,000t/yr of atmospheric CO2, making the sector net negative overall. Other levers, especially indirect emissions and transportation, require broader collaboration and enabling action by government and other industries.”
Through their actions to date, MPA Lime members reduced their absolute CO2 emissions by 25% between 2005 and 2022.
US: Ash Grove Cement has won funding for a US$15.2m front-end engineering design (FEED) study for a carbon capture installation at its 2Mt/yr Foreman cement plant in Arkansas. Parent company CRH said that the study will run for 24 months from its date of commencement. The project team also includes consultancy and research firms Advanced Resources International and Crescent Resource Information, as well as non-profit interstate policy organisation Southern States Energy Board. Equipment suppliers will include France-based industrial gases company Air Liquide and energy company Sargent & Lundy, while electricity provider Talos will participate as an energy sector stakeholder.
The Foreman cement plant carbon capture FEED study is one of eight projects selected by the US Department of Energy to receive part of a US$189m funding pot for carbon capture demonstrations across US industry.
Denmark: Aalborg Portland and US-based Fidelis New Energy have signed a letter of intent to collaborate on the onshore storage of captured CO2 from the cement producer's Aalborg cement plant in North Jutland. The partners will convey captured CO2 from the plant to Fidelis New Energy's upcoming Norne Carbon Storage Hub at East Port of Aalborg via a pipeline. The pipeline is scheduled for commissioning ahead of the launch of the Aalborg cement plant's upcoming carbon capture system in 2030. The system will capture 400,000t/yr of CO2 from the plant's flue gases.
Fidelis New Energy's Norne Carbon Storage Hub is due to commence operations in 2026. It will have a handling capacity of 4Mt/yr of CO2, with the possibility of subsequently expanding to 8Mt/yr.
Taiwan: Taiwan Cement Corporation aims to diversify its business away from cement by increasing its sales from energy storage and vehicle charging. It aims to derive over 50% of its revenues from other activities besides cement by 2025. The Taipei Times newspaper has reported that the producer will continue to produce 80Mt/yr of cement. The company said that the reason behind its planned diversification is its responsibility to help reduce global net CO2 emissions.
Chair Nelson Chang said “Carbon reductions must be fast and efficient, and the use of solar and other green energy resources in producing cement is not enough to offset carbon emissions. That means Taiwan Cement has to press ahead and develop carbon capture techniques that would help mitigate the negative impact of cement production on the environment.”
Canada: The district council of Capital Regional District (CRD) says that it expects to resume sending biosolids to Lafarge Canada's Richmond cement plant in early June 2023. This follows a reported reduction in production at the unit in 2023 and 2022, according to the Times Colonist newspaper. The 1.1Mt/yr cement plant previously used biosolids supplied by the CRD as an alternative fuel in its cement production. However, during the current hiatus the biosolids have been sent to landfill instead.
The Richmond cement plant is the site of the CO2MENT carbon capture and utilisation project. The project proceeded to its third phase, which consists of a capture capacity expansion and the installation of a liquefaction plant, in May 2023.
France: The French cement association France Ciment has announced a new CO2 emissions reduction target of 50% across the cement industry between 2021 and 2030. The new target for 2050 will be 'virtual carbon neutrality.' The Les Echos newspaper has reported that the commitments replace previous reduction targets of 24% by 2030 and 80% by 2050. France Ciment says that its members are planning estimated investments of Euro5bn towards achieving the goals before 2040. These investments will cover areas including the deployment of carbon capture. Existing public and private investments in the industry's on-going projects to reduce CO2 emissions amount to Euro1.7bn - sufficient to eliminate 27% of emissions compared with the 2021 baseline.
France Ciment’s President Benoit Pillon noted the necessity of cement in construction, and called for 'decarbonisation as a whole: less clinker in cement, less cement in concrete and less concrete in construction.' He urged the implementation of policies to secure 'decarbonised and competitive electricity.'
Heidelberg Materials and Linde select BASF for separation of captured CO2 at Lengfurt cement plant
23 May 2023Germany: Chemicals company BASF has won a contract to supply its OASE Blue CO2 separation technology for use in the upcoming 70,000t/yr carbon capture installation at Heidelberg Material's Lengfurt cement plant in Bavaria. The Capture to Use (Cap2U) project, in partnership with fellow chemicals company Linde, aims to capture CO2 from the plant for use in the chemicals, food and beverages industries.
BASF head of gas treatment Andreas Northemann said “Our portfolio of OASE technologies makes a significant contribution to sustainability and is perfectly suited to help our customers achieve their sustainability targets. This carbon capture and use unit facility has the potential to become a show-case project in a hard-to-abate sector."
UK: Aggregate Industries, Breedon, Lhoist and Tarmac have announced the launch of the Peak Cluster, a carbon capture and storage cluster of cement and lime plants. The partners aim to eliminate 3Mt/yr of emissions from operations across their plants in Cheshire, Derbyshire and Staffordshire by capturing 100% of their CO2 emissions. Progressive Energy will oversee the capture and transportation of CO2 from the plants for storage below the Irish Sea. Possible storage partners for the cluster are Liverpool Bay CCS or the upcoming Morecambe Net Zero storage project. When operational, the Peak Cluster will eliminate 40% of emissions from UK cement and lime production. Participating cement plants are Aggregate Industries' 1Mt/yr Cauldon cement plant in Staffordshire, Breedon's 1.5Mt/yr Hope plant in Derbyshire and Tarmac's 0.8Mt/yr Tunstead plant in Derbyshire.
Mineral Products Association (MPA) energy and climate change director Diana Casey said “The launch of the Peak Cluster is an exciting and vital step forward in the journey of the cement and lime sectors towards net zero. The region is a historic heartland for cement and lime production providing highly skilled jobs for local communities, and a secure supply of essential materials to the UK economy." She concluded "The UK Concrete and Cement Industry Roadmap to Beyond Net Zero highlighted the importance of carbon capture for the decarbonisation of the cement and concrete supply chain, and the Peak Cluster is an essential part of that transition. This launch demonstrates the commitment of cement and lime producers to transition to net zero to secure the future of these important industries, and the vital products they produce, in a net zero world.”