Displaying items by tag: Sustainability

Belgium: The European cement association Cembureau has called for the European Union (EU) to continue to permit the free allocation of carbon credits under the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) until it completes the roll-out of Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanisms (CBAM) in 2030 at the earliest. It said that this would provide indirect cost compensation and mitigate the risk of the relocation of industries. It would additionally incentivise emissions reduction by EU suppliers, ensure a smooth implementation of CBAM in the event of challenge to CBAM by the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and mitigate distortions on the EU internal market, according to the association. It gave the example of cement producers competing with other building materials producers as a way in which an overlap period can limit the disruptive impact of CBAM on European value chains.

Chief executive officer Koen Coppenholle said, “A pragmatic approach is needed regarding the interaction of CBAM with the existing carbon leakage measures. A full co-existence of CBAM and free allocation is essential to minimise risks for the industry, avoid distortions on the internal market, safeguard the competitiveness of exports and provide certainty for investors. Such full co-existence, which can be done without any risk of ‘double protection,’ should last at least until the end of Phase IV of the EU ETS in 2030, following which the CBAM will hopefully be mature and expanded to cover most sectors of the economy.” He added, “CBAM is a useful tool to address the imports of products not subject to similar carbon constraints in the EU and therewith mitigates the carbon leakage risk allowing the European cement industry to deliver low-carbon investments. The Environment Committee’s report highlights some key points in this respect, notably that a CBAM should result in EU and non-EU suppliers competing on the same CO₂ costs basis, that the scope of CBAM should be wide to avoid market distortions and that both direct and indirect emissions should be included.”

Colombia: LafargeHolcim subsidiary Holcim Colombia has launched Eco, a cement bag label detailing products’ CO₂ emissions reduction by comparison to Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC), on its Boyacá Súper Fuerte and Holcim Maestro cements. The La República newspaper has reported that the labels signal the company’s commitment to the Business Ambition for 1.5°C anti-climate change initiative.

Executive president Marco Maccarelli said that the launch is one more step on company’s path towards Net Zero and sustainable construction, engaging the entire value chain.

Italy: Cementir Holding recorded revenues from sales and services of Euro1.22bn in 2020, up by 1% year-on-year from Euro1.21bn in 2019. Cement and clinker volumes rose by 13% to 10.7Mt from 9.49Mt. Volumes registered the sharpest increase in Turkey, of 39%. Ready-mixed concrete (RMX) volumes grew by 7.8% to 4.4Mm³ from 4.1Mm³. The company maintained its 2019 earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) levels of Euro264m. It said that an improvement in performance in Turkey, Denmark, Egypt, China and Sweden balanced out negative effects on earnings in Belgium, US and Malaysia.

Chair and chief executive officer Francesco Caltagirone said, “In 2020, despite the serious pandemic, the group showed significant resilience with a 13% increase in cement volumes sold and revenue reaching the historical record. On a recurring basis, EBITDA increased by 2%, EBIT was up by 4% and yearly cash generation was Euro119m."

Under Plan 2021 – 2023 Industrial Plan, the company says that it envisages sales growth of 20% to Euro1.47bn and EBITDA growth of 29% to Euro340bn in 2023 compared to 2020 figures. It said that digitalisation investments begun in 2019 will contribute an expected Euro15m to EBITDA in 2023. As part of its sustainability commitments it has set a CO₂ emissions reduction target of around 30% by 2030, with emissions below 500kg/t of grey cement. However, it said that under the future European Taxonomy criteria white cement emissions are not included.

The group is planning to invest around Euro107m from 2021 to 2023 on sustainability and digitalisation. This includes a the construction of a new calcination plant in Denmark for the production of its Futurecem product and, the installation of wind turbines with an installed capacity of 8.4MW. It is also planning to increase the alternative fuels substitution rate at its integrated Gaurain plant in Belgian to 80% from 40% and invest in the use of natural gas and biogas in some of its plants.

Andrew Minson from the Global Cement and Concrete Association (GCCA) kicked off this week’s Virtual Global Concrete Conference with an overview of concrete’s role in the association’s 2050 climate ambition. The association announced in September 2020 that it was starting work on this roadmap for publication in the second half of 2021, just in time for the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, currently schedule to take place in Glasgow, Scotland in November 2021. Minson ran through the topic, providing an overview of concrete’s intrinsic sustainable features and the policy levers the association is considering for its forthcoming roadmap.

One point from circular economy aspects of the plan included design for dis-assembly (DfD) and long life, loose fit modes of thinking around how a building using concrete should be conceived, designed, built, used and - crucially – reused. Long life, loose fit, low energy (to use its original name) was promoted by the Welsh architect Alex Gordon from the early 1970s. It covered themes of sustainability, flexibility and energy efficiency for building design ahead of both the 1970s oil crisis and the current climate one. DfD emerged in the 1990s as a way of thinking about a building’s demolition at the start and working from there. Deconstruction or demolition is prepared for through planning and design. It allows components and materials to be removed more easily, facilitating their subsequent reuse. So, components and materials can be removed more easily allowing their subsequent reuse and elements such as columns, walls, beams, and slabs can be disassembled to facilitate this. Last year Global Cement Weekly explored a similar path with the ideas of Dutch architect and commentator Thomas Rau (GCW348) and his concept of building materials as a service, following on from the Building Information Modelling (BIM) system, and the suggestion that companies simply rent (!) building materials from their manufacturers to encourage whole life thinking.

Chart 1: Uses of concrete by European Ready Mixed Concrete Organisation (ERMCO) members in 2018. Source: ERMCO.

Just how much concrete the world uses each year is a question beyond the scope of this article, given its range of applications and diversity of users. For example, the Cement Sustainability Initiative (CSI) estimated 25Bnt in 2009. Later, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) technical committee for concrete, reinforced concrete and pre-stressed concrete placed the figure at around 33Bnt in 2016. It is worth considering how and where concrete is actually used. The chart above from the European Ready Mixed Concrete Organisation (ERMCO) shows how its members used concrete in 2018. Note that use in buildings comprised the biggest share, nearly two thirds, but that the rest included infrastructure, pavements, roads and more. Lifecycle thinking and its various offshoots can apply to all of these applications. Yet it’s easier to imagine a concrete building shell being reused within its lifespan than, say, a bridge or a road. Concrete used in infrastructure seems more suitable for re-use further down the waste hierarchy, such as recycling as an aggregate.

A few final thoughts to consider are that both Cemex and gypsum wallboard manufacturer Etex have invested in modular and/or offsite construction companies in January 2021. Both targets were relatively small companies suggesting growing interest in these sectors by larger players. Offsite building construction suits lifecycle thinking well because the modular components start off being built elsewhere before installation. Factoring in what happens afterwards should be relatively easy and expandable at scale. Finally, LafargeHolcim announced this week that it is acquiring two ready-mix concrete and aggregate suppliers in France and Italy that will give it 35 concrete plants in the region.

Sustainability places lifecycle thinking into mainstream building practice and some methods and tools will inevitably make it into any policy framework the GCCA will recommend. Whether some or all of the ideas above hang around remains to be seen but lifecycle thinking in some form or another is here already and not going anywhere.

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Japan: Sumitomo Osaka Cement has been declared eligible for the Development Bank of Japan’s (DBJ) Environmental Rating loan program for the second time. The scheme offers preferential interest rates to companies scoring highly in environmental management based on the bank’s screening system. The cement producer says it obtained the ranking through its promotion of energy saving, waste recycling and greenhouse emission reduction targets for 2030 and 2050 in its business strategy.

US: Switzerland-based LafargeHolcim has become a founder member of the MIT Climate and Sustainability Consortium with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The group says that the consortium aims to accelerate climate action through innovation. It says that it will represent the building materials industry in working with MIT’s research team to develop ‘scalable solutions’ to tackle climate change. It joins 12 other companies, including Apple, Boeing and IBM.

Chief executive officer Jan Jenisch said, “I am committed to building a net zero future, driving innovative and sustainable building solutions that work for people and the planet. With the urgency of today’s climate crisis, no single organisation can tackle it alone. That’s why I am proud to be joining MIT’s alliance of like-minded industry leaders and academic partners to scale up our climate action together.”

Canada: Lehigh Cement and the International CCS Knowledge Centre are conducting a feasibility study looking at carbon capture and storage (CCS) at the Edmonton cement plant in Alberta. The project aims to find out whether capturing 90 – 95% of the CO₂ from the plant’s flue gas is viable. Completion of the study is scheduled for the autumn of 2021.

The Lehigh CCS Feasibility Study will consider an engineering design using carbon capture technology owned by Japan-based Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engineering (MHIENG), part of MHI Group. The KM CDR process, which is being deployed at 13 commercial plants globally, will be examined for integration with Lehigh’s plant and output specifications, such as a flue gas pretreatment system and the carbon capture and compression process.

The aims of the study are to: deliver a Class 4 cost estimate; to work with a capture technology provider (MHI Group) to perform engineering design tailored to the Lehigh plant; to manage the process and engage third parties, as necessary; to complete a detailed business case; and to develop the budget for Front End Engineering Study (FEED). The project has received US$1.4m in funding from Emissions Reduction Alberta (ERA) through its Partnership Intake Program.

US: The Portland Cement Association (PCA) has welcomed the new administration’s plan to re-enter the Paris Agreement to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions. President and chief executive officer Michael Ireland said, “Climate change is one of the greatest challenges of our time. The cement and concrete industry have an important role to play in decarbonising the manufacturing sector while providing the building materials necessary for a safe, resilient, and sustainable economy.”

The association’s government affairs senior vice president Sean O’Neill said “Federal policymakers will have a particularly important role to play. Some of the technologies needed to tackle industrial decarbonisation are still in the research and development phase. Governmental support is needed to accelerate both development and deployment. We also need to make sure that federal policies support industrial decarbonisation without undermining the competitiveness of US manufacturers.” He added, “Climate change is a global issue, and it will require global cooperation. The US cannot solve this problem alone.”

Mexico: Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua (GCC) has joined other members of the UK-based Global Cement and Concrete Association(GCCA) in committing to carbon-neutral concrete production by 2050. The association launched the ambition in September 2020.

GCC chief executive officer Enrique Escalante said, “Sustainability is an important element of our long-term strategy. GCC is committed to implementing global best practices throughout the organisation while further strengthening the Company’s long-term profitability.”

Japan: Sumitomo Osaka Cement become partner of WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization) GREEN, an online database and network that organisations in the sustainable technology innovation value chain network with each other. The cement producer says it developing a high-performance product business that will supply sustainable cementitious products to help society build infrastructure. It is doing this by increasing co-processing rates, using more industrial by-products and developing new technologies to support a carbon neutral society.