Sweden: Heidelberg Materials has withdrawn its application to build a carbon capture and storage (CCS) facility at its Slite cement plant after the Swedish Energy Agency rejected its request for nearly €747m in funding. The company had applied for an environmental permit in June 2024 and previously planned to complete the facility by 2030. It announced in November 2025 that it had ‘paused’ the project.

Head of public affairs Hannes Borg said “This is a result of us putting the CCS project on hold in November 2025 until there is more clarity about the financing. A permit application cannot be put on hold, while it was in the schedule for us to submit additional information. Since we still have not resolved the crucial issue of financing, we therefore had to withdraw the application. However, the ambition to build a carbon capture facility in Slite remains.”

Borg added that if the company bears the full cost of the project, the costs for end consumers would be too high for the project to be commercially viable. However, he said that the company remained ‘fully committed’ to getting a CCS facility in place in Slite, and was now working to identify sustainable financing solutions and ‘continuing the dialogue’ with decision-makers.

UK: Breedon Group launched its ‘British Cement Advocacy’ campaign alongside publication of its 2025 results. CEO Rob Wood wrote to ministers in the Departments for Business and Trade and Energy Security and Net Zero, and campaigned alongside the Mineral Products Association, calling for government action to support domestic cement production. The company said that rising cement imports risk exporting jobs, investment and emissions while increasing supply chain risks. Breedon called for the establishment of a carbon border adjustment mechanism, to address competitiveness challenges, to accelerate support for carbon capture technologies and for the promotion of domestically produced cement in public procurement.

Wood said “Using public procurement policy to support domestically produced cement would unlock huge opportunities and ensure the government’s investment in housing and infrastructure delivers wider economic growth. It would also protect thousands of highly skilled, well-paid jobs across all four UK nations. We will continue our engagement throughout 2026 as we strongly encourage the government and our customers to ‘Back British Cement’.”

Spain: Molins has published its 2025 Sustainability Report, outlining progress in environmental, social and governance matters, as well as on progress on its Sustainability Roadmap 2030. The report details progress in areas such as decarbonisation, circular economy, natural resource management, biodiversity and social impact.

The company aims to reduce emissions to below 460kg/t of cementitious material by 2030. It will invest more than €65m over the next few years to reduce its carbon footprint. It also reported a 25% alternative fuel substitution rate and said that renewable electricity represents 44% of global consumption and 100% in Spain. The report also mentioned progress in social matters, stating that 22% of management positions are held by women.

Director of corporate development and sustainability Carlos Martínez said “At Molins, we understand sustainability as a strategic pillar that guides the evolution of our business. This report reflects the work carried out in different areas of the company to move towards an increasingly efficient and responsible industrial model.”

Canada: Progressive Planet has developed a supplementary cementitious material named Planet LCD Cement, based on limestone calcined diatomite. The company said the material can replace up to 50% of Portland cement while maintaining compressive strength in mortar cube tests meeting ASTM C618 requirements. Current testing has reportedly demonstrated strong compressive strength replacing Portland cement on a ‘weight for weight’ basis at 20%, 35% and 50% replacement, with all compressive strengths passing ASTM C618.

CEO Steve Harpur said “Planet LCD Cement uses diatomaceous earth, limestone and gypsum, all of which are plentiful materials. We have created a highly-reactive cement without metakaolin. Waste diatomaceous earth powders sell for a fraction of the cost of metakaolin. This opens up opportunities to utilise waste diatomaceous earth powders globally to replace 50% of Portland with Planet LCD Cement.”

A trademark application for the name Planet LCD Cement has been filed in Canada and a provisional patent application for the composition of Planet LCD Cement has been filed in the US.