The cement industry in the EU has started to go through a transition towards more sustainable and greener solutions, as a direct response to the 2050 carbon-neutral targets of the EU. Due to the current geopolitical, health and climate issues, this strategy needs to be fostered even more. How to decarbonise the industry?
Since committing to being carbon neutral by 2050, Europe’s cement industry has been working hard to cut CO2 emissions in each stage of the cement and concrete value chain. It’s no easy task – cement is the most-used man-made building material around, with no scalable substitutes, and accounts for around 8% of global CO2 emissions. Considering population growth and global urbanisation trends, this will likely remain the case for the foreseeable future.
The Ukraine war, worsening climate crisis, and the COVID-19 pandemic have intensified concerns around environmental and social issues in recent times, impacting on most sectors to varying degrees. And cement is no different. Many players in the cement industry are pushing sustainability higher up the agenda and looking for ways to go greener.
In April 2022, the European Cement Association (CEMBUREAU) saw fit to publish a position paper underscoring its commitment to its carbon neutrality goals and roadmap. It proposed key actions that would help the cement industry cope with the changing geopolitical context while furthering the EU priorities on energy and climate.
The message is clear: the industry has its 2050 goals clearly in its sights. But just how can it decarbonise amid a multitude of obstacles?
Decarbonising cement requires large investments in new technologies and innovations, which only the biggest players active on a wide geographical scale can afford. These investments don’t have an immediate pay-off and require very disciplined and adequate tracking to make sure they’re doing what’s intended. Yet, because the cement industry is characterised by the presence of such large global players, new technology can be more effective and used more widely, at a quicker pace.
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