Displaying items by tag: net zero

Germany: Cemex Zement’s Rüdersdorf, Brandenburg, cement plant is to host a new 100t/day carbon capture installation. Cemex Zement will collaborate with UK-based Carbon Clean on a front-end engineering and design (FEED) study for the project. The system will combine captured CO₂ with sustainably sourced hydrogen in order to produce green synthetic hydrocarbons. The partners aim to increase the system’s CO₂ capture capacity to 300t/day by 2026, before finally scaling it up to 2000t/day.

Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia regional president Sergio Menendez said “This project with Carbon Clean is the latest development in Cemex’s plan to achieve carbon neutrality at the Rüdersdorf cement plant by 2030, through our pioneering carbon neutral alliance with expert industrial consortiums. Carbon capture will play a fundamental role in the efforts to succeed at this goal and ensure our operations are more sustainable.”

Switzerland: The Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) has validated Holcim’s 2050 net zero CO2 emissions pathway. The pathway consists of targets covering Holcim’s entire value chain, across Scopes 1 – 3.

CEO Jan Jenisch said “The building sector has an essential role to play to accelerate our world’s transition to net zero. I am proud to be joining the SBTi today to announce Holcim’s net zero pathway to 2050. By setting the first Net-Zero Standard for our industry, we are walking the talk on our commitment to take science-driven action to win the Race to net Zero.”

Colombia: Cementos Argos has announced its new commitment to reduce the CO₂ emissionsfrom its cement operations by 29% over a period ending in 2030. The company has additionally committed to producing all of its concrete CO₂-neutrally by 2050. It said that its strategy will comprise several carbon mitigation techniques, including maximised alternative fuel (AF) substitution, clinker factor reduction, energy optimisation, clean technology upgrades and a diversification of its range of its cement range to include more sustainable products.

Chief executive officer Juan Calle said "We are determined to face this important challenge and we are convinced that we can build the future we have planned and achieve a more prosperous, inclusive and low-carbon world if we work together with determination to accelerate this transition." He added "We will continue to strive to implement tangible actions, achieve measurable progress each year and deliver information about out opportunities and progress transparently."

Finland: Wärtsilä’s sales fell by 6% year-on-year to Euro3.18bn in the first nine months of 2021 from Euro3.39bn in the corresponding period of 2020. It increased its order intake by 11% to Euro3.58bn from Euro3.24bn. The company’s cash flow from operating activities fell by 12% to Euro360m from Euro407m. It expects that demand for its offering will increase ‘considerably’ year-on-year in the fourth quarter of 2021.

The supplier announced that it will aim to achieve carbon neutral operations and to provide a product portfolio which will be ready for zero carbon fuels by 2030. It published a report entitled Front Loading Net Zero on how production economies can make savings while managing the renewable energy transition. The report concludes that full decarbonisation before 2050 will be financially viable if properly supported by governments and energy companies.

President and CEO Håkan Agnevall said “These new targets demonstrate our commitment to a sustainable future. Our aim is to support our customers on their decarbonisation. Our products, solutions, and services will meet the stringent environmental requirements, and the fuel flexibility and fuel efficiency of the engines powering these sectors are key to enabling the transformation.” Agnevall added “Naturally, we also need to do our part as an organisation and minimise our own environmental footprint.”

China: The government plans to implement a benchmark level of energy efficiency for cement plants by 2025 in order to realise its national goal of no CO₂ emissions growth by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060. Local press has reported that the government has yet to set a specific benchmark for the cement industry. The corresponding figure for aluminium production will be 13,000kWh/t.

Greece: Titan Cement has signed the Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi)’s Business Ambition for 1.5°C pledge. In so doing, it joins the UN’s Race to Zero campaign for collaboration towards a global zero-CO₂ future. The Group’s decarbonisation plans consist of an increased reliance on alternative fuel (AF), accelerated energy efficiency improvement efforts and a shift to low-carbon products and processes.

Titan Cement said “Through the participation in European and international consortia, as well as through collaborations in research and development projects, Titan will continue to develop low-carbon cementitious products and pilot carbon capture technologies in its plants, actively contributing to the industry’s ambition for a carbon-neutral future.”

World: Forty cement and concrete producers, representing 80% of concrete production outside of China in 2020, have together affirmed their commitment to the Global Cement and Concrete Association (GCCA)’s Roadmap to Net Zero concrete decarbonisation strategy. The roadmap’s seven-point plan consists of increased cement plant efficiency, which should eliminate 22% of emissions, increased concrete production efficiency (11%), adjustments to cement and binders (9%), decarbonisation of raw materials (11%), carbon capture and storage (CCS) (36%), a transition to renewable energy (5%) and the natural recarbonation of concrete (6%).

Besides full decarbonisation by 2050, the strategy provides for a 25% reduction in the global concrete sector’s CO₂ emissions by 2030 and the elimination of 4.9Bnt of CO₂ emissions by 2030 alone. The GCCA called the new commitment a ‘significant acceleration’ of cement and concrete producers’ on-going decarbonisation efforts, and said that it represented ‘the biggest global commitment by any industry’ to carbon neutrality. Acknowledging the burden on cement producers, the GCCA called on downstream companies and governments to support the industry’s transition.

GCCA member China National Building Material (CNBM) CEO Cao Jianglin said “This is a landmark for industry co-operation in decarbonisation. As part of a global industry, it will need collaboration across our sector to achieve it. As one of the leading cement and concrete producers in China, we will play our part in decarbonising the industry.”

US: The California State Senate has voted in favour of a bill to implement the US’s most advanced statutory framework for cement industry decarbonisation by 74 votes to two. The statute provides for the implementation of lifecycle CO₂ emissions reporting for cement produced in the state at an estimated cost of US$220,000/yr. The California Air Resources Board will then implement a ‘programme developed as a result of identified strategies’ at an ‘unknown but significant cost.’ The aim of the strategy will be to facilitate a 40% reduction in cement production’s CO₂ emissions between 2019 and 2030 and the attainment of net zero cement production by 2045.

Russia: Holcim Russia has committed to realising a 15% CO₂ emissions reduction in its cement production between 2019 and 2030 to 475kg/t from 561kg/t. It plans to further reduce its cement’s CO2 emissions to 453kg/t by 2050, and to implement further measures to ensure its net carbon neutrality at that time.

Corporate relations director Vitaly Bogachenko said “The company's goal is to drastically reduce carbon emissions, and there are two working solutions for this. The first is the use of alternative fuels (AF) obtained from different types of waste: residues of municipal solid waste after sorting and extraction of all useful fractions from them, used tyres and others. The presence of biomass in them makes such fuels carbon neutral, so emissions during production are significantly reduced. The second solution is to replace carbon intensive raw materials. For example, instead of limestone, we use slags. The 'recipe' for cement is completely different: thanks to the new composition and the lower temperature during the firing process, the carbon footprint in the production of cement is reduced.”

UK: The Mineral Products Association (MPA) has announced the successful completion of a trial of cement production using a net-zero fuel mix consisting of hydrogen and refuse-derived fuel (RDF) at Hanson’s Ribblesdale, Lancashire, cement plant. The RDF in the mix consists of meat and bone meal (MBM) from the food industry and glycerol from biodiesel production.

Increased alternative fuel (AF) substitution is one of seven key levers in the MPA’s Roadmap Beyond Net Zero emissions reduction strategy. The association says that the fuel will eliminate 180,000t/yr of CO₂ emissions from the Ribblesdale plant’s operations when fully implemented. The project received Euro3.71m in government funding.

Hanson’s environmental sustainability manager Iain Walpole said “We are delighted to be involved with this world-leading project, which is a further example of our commitment to cutting CO₂ emissions.” He added “It will also contribute to our ambition of supplying net zero carbon concrete by 2050.”