Displaying items by tag: CO2

US: Holcim US will invest US$100m in an expansion to raise its Ste. Genevieve cement plant’s capacity by 15% to 4.6Mt/yr. The expansion will involve the installation of a fifth vertical roller mill (VRM) for cement grinding and a new mineral component addition system, alongside a rail-loadout expansion. The producer says that the expanded plant will have lower net CO₂ emissions than before. Construction is set to commence in 2024.

Toufic Tabbara, head of Holcim’s North America region, said “With an emphasis on achieving the highest levels of environmental performance and operational efficiency, Ste. Genevieve has been the leader in US cement manufacturing since it was built in 2009. This investment will ensure we maintain that leadership in supporting the sustainable growth of our nation’s infrastructure and residential construction while accelerating net carbon reduction across the built environment.”

US: Solidia Technologies has appointed climate consultancy 3Degrees to manage the measurement, verification and sale of carbon credits for CO₂ emissions reductions generated using Solidia Technologies products. Users of the products can deploy the credits against their Scope 3 emissions from cement and concrete, as well as to compensate for other greenhouse gas emissions.

Solidia Technologies chief executive officer Russell Hill said "By partnering with 3Degrees to issue carbon credits, Solidia is providing a mechanism for the marketplace to invest in technologies that will accelerate and enable global carbon emissions reduction.”

Cementos Molins has been celebrating the first anniversary this week of its alternative raw materials unit at its Sant Vicenç dels Horts plant near Barcelona. It has processed 75,000t of waste since September 2022 when the site started up. More is yet to come as the unit has a production capacity of up to 200,000t/yr. The facility receives waste in coarse, granular, powder and sludge formats. Waste from concrete plants is crushed and screened to produce recycled aggregate. Industrial and construction waste is dosed and homogenised to produce alternative raw materials for cement production.

Global Cement Weekly has covered construction and demolition waste (CDW) a couple of times already so far in 2023. A number of cement producers are investing in the sector - including Holcim, Heidelberg Materials, CRH, Cemex – by developing technology, buying up other companies, setting up internal CDW divisions and so on. Holcim and Heidelberg Materials have been the more obviously active participants over the past six months based on media coverage. In September 2023 Holcim France commissioned the Saint-Laurent-de-Mûre alternative raw materials plant and Holcim Group invested in Neustark, a company promoting technology to sequester CO₂ in CDW. In August 2023 Lafarge Canada also completed the first stage of a pilot project to use CDW in cement production at its St. Constant plant in Quebec. Heidelberg Materials meanwhile announced in October 2023 that a forthcoming upgrade to its Górażdże cement plant in Poland would include a new CDW recycling unit and in September 2023 it launched a CDW division for its subsidiary Hanson UK.

Previously we have described how the European Union (EU) has set recovery targets for CDW. However, McKinsey & Company published research in March 2023 setting out the economic case for cement and concrete companies looking at CDW. It estimated that “an increased adoption of circular technologies could be linked to the emergence of new financial net-value pools worth up to roughly Euro110bn by 2050.” It is not a certainty and there is risk involved, but adopting circular practices is one way to reduce this risk. It then went on to predict that recirculating materials and minerals could generate nearly Euro80bn/yr in earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) for the cement and concrete sectors by 2050. The biggest portion of this could come from using CDW in various ways such as a clinker replacement or as an aggregate in concrete production, or the use of unhydrated cement ‘fines.’ Capturing and using CO₂ and increasing alternative fuels (AF) substitution rates would have a financial impact but not to the same scale.

Graph 1: CO₂ abatement cost via circular technologies for cement and concrete sectors. Source: McKinsey & Company.

Graph 1 above puts all of the McKinsey circular technology suggestions in one place with the prediction that all of these methods could reduce CO₂ emissions from cement and concrete production by 80% in 2050 based on an estimated demand of 4Bnt/yr. The first main point they made was that technologies using CO₂, such as curing ready-mix or precast concrete, can create positive economic value at carbon prices of approximately Euro80/t of CO₂. Readers should note that the EU emissions Trading Scheme CO₂ price has generally been above Euro80t/yr since the start of 2022. The second point to note is that using CDW could potentially save money by offering CO₂ abatement at a negative cost through avoiding landfill gate fees and reducing the amount of raw materials required. This is dependent though on government regulation on CO₂ prices, landfill costs and so on.

Cement producers have been clearly aware of the potential of CDW for a while now, based on the actions described above and elsewhere, and they are jockeying for advantage. These companies are familiar with the economic rationale for AF and secondary cementitious materials (SCM) in different countries and locations. CDW usage is similar but with, in McKinsey’s view, existing CO₂ prices, landfill costs, and regulatory frameworks all playing a part in the calculations. Graph 1 is a prediction but it is also another way of showing the path of least resistance to decarbonisation. It is cheaper to start with AF, SCMs and CDW rather than barrelling straight into carbon capture. The beauty here is that cement and concrete sold, say, 50 years ago is now heading back to the producers in the form of CDW and it still has value.

US: Summit Materials has entered into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with hydrogen producer PCC Hydrogen (PCCH2). The MOU establishes an alliance to develop a fuel replacement strategy for Summit Materials’ cement production. PCCH2 will build a hydrogen plant to supply green hydrogen at a cement plant belonging to Summit Materials subsidiary Continental Cement.

Continental Cement president David Loomes said "Continental Cement has a longstanding commitment to environmental stewardship, seeking out opportunities to develop innovative practices and differentiated solutions to build a better tomorrow. Our company has signed on to the Portland Cement Association (PCA)'s Roadmap to Carbon Neutrality, with a goal of achieving carbon neutrality across the value chain by 2050. By coupling PCCH2's hydrogen production process with our cement manufacturing know-how, we are taking a bold stride towards achieving that goal, while continuing the push to cost-effective decarbonisation of cement manufacturing."

Switzerland: Reduced-CO₂ cement catalyst developer Nanogence has secured an undisclosed sum from a consortium of investors led by investment fund CirCap. Nanogence’s catalyst reduces the CO₂ emissions of cement production by 40%, without changing production processes. Tech EU News has reported that the catalyst is capable of increasing cement’s strength and durability compared with that of ordinary Portland cement (OPC) produced without it. Prior to the latest financial development, the company had raised US$2.7m-worth of funding.

CEO Abhishek Kumar said “We are excited to receive the support from incoming renowned investors in this essential journey to accelerate the transition towards a low carbon built world. With growing demand worldwide, we need to align with like-minded strong backers for our growth phase.”

US: The US Department of Energy has awarded C-Crete Technologies US$2m in funding. C-Crete Technologies is developing a method for using CO₂ captured at industrial sources or from the air as an ingredient in its cement-free concrete. The binder will produce almost no CO₂ and continue to absorb more CO₂ from the air over time. It offers scalability and cost-parity with conventional cement for concrete producers, according to the developer.

C-Crete Technologies president Rouzbeh Savary said “We are committed to crafting a cement-free, carbon-negative ready-mix concrete that doesn’t just mitigate CO₂ emissions but actively contributes to reversing climate change. Our aim is nothing short of revolutionising this hard-to-abate, carbon-heavy sector.”

Spain: Cementos Molins inaugurated its new Euro6.6m headquarters in Sant Vicenç dels Horts, Catalonia. The facilities include a 3250m² solar power plant, which will supply 100% of the energy consumed in the building’s operations. The solar power plant consists of an array of 1455 photovoltaic panels. Cementos Molins says that it also used recycled materials where possible in building its new headquarters.

CEO Julio Rodríguez said “We celebrate 95 years of life and we feel proud to contribute to the development of the country and its social evolution. In our DNA is the will to collaborate with our environment.”

India: Dalmia Bharat sold 13.2Mt of cement during the first half of the 2024 financial year (1 April 2023 – 30 September 2023), up by 9.6% year-on-year 12Mt in the first half of the 2023 financial year. This contributed towards a 24% year-on-year rise in the producer’s earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) to US$144m from US$116m in the previous first half. During the first half of the current financial year, Dalmia Bharat commenced commercial production from its new 500,000t/yr Ariyalur clinker plant and 2Mt/yr Sattur grinding plant, both in Tamil Nadu. The former commissioning raised the company’s clinker capacity to 22.2Mt/yr.

Group managing director and CEO Puneet Dalmia said “We see a multi-year-strong cement demand trend continuing, as India is undergoing a large-scale metamorphosis. We were one of the first ones to foresee this upcycle and started building our capacity ahead of time. In the past 3.5 years, we have added 17.2Mt/yr-worth of cement capacity, which is 65% growth over 2020 financial year capacity. In line with our vision to reach 110 – 130Mt/yr by 2031, we are continuing to make consistent strides in that direction and capitalise upon the huge opportunity ahead of us.”

The company’s cement managing director and CEO, Mahendra Singhi, noted the effects of a ‘reduction in fuel prices, increased usage of renewable power and improvement in key performance indicators.’ He added “We continue to demonstrate our commitment towards the environment, as we have further brought down our CO₂ footprint to 456kg/t of cement, which is one of the lowest in the global cement sector.”

Bulgaria: Titan Cement subsidiary Zlatna Panega Cement plans to invest Euro11m in sustainability-enhancing upgrades to its Zlatnopanegki cement plant in Lovech Province. The work centres around a Euro7m alternative fuels (AF) upgrade, to raise the plant’s AF substitution rate to 70% from 50% in 2022. Besides this, the producer will also invest Euro4m in the construction of a solar power plant at the facility. The solar power plant is scheduled for commissioning in March 2024. General manager Adamantios Frantzis said that the plant will subsequently move on to its ‘next big project,’ consisting of a Euro35 – 50m upgrade, in 2026 – 2028.

Zlatna Panega Cement invested Euro5.7m in capital expenditure throughout 2022, more than double its investments of Euro2.6m in 2021. It is committed to interim CO₂ reduction targets of 5000t/yr (Scope 1) and 3000t/yr (Scope 2 and 3), and net zero CO₂ emissions by 2050.

Ghana: CIMPOR has appointed Germany-based ThyssenKrupp Polysius to build a 1280t/day flash activator for clay. The activator will supply calcined clay for use in the production of cement with a clinker factor as low as 50%. This can reduce the cement’s CO₂ emissions by 40% compared with ordinary Portland cement (OPC). The supplier’s contract covers engineering, supply of core equipment and supervision of the project. The equipment includes parts for clay handling, a hammer mill, a flash dryer and preheating and cooling equipment, as well as storage silos. The activator will be natural gas-fired.

Polysius Activated Clay product owner Leo Fit said "Our technology is not only more environmentally friendly, but also creates cost benefits for our customers like CIMPOR. In many regions, limestone is scarce and clinker has to be imported at high cost. At the same time, suitable clay sources are available. The increasing pressure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is leading cement manufacturers to rethink. They need an alternative that is cost-efficient and at the same time provides high-quality cement. This is exactly what Polysius activated clay offers."