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November 2018
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World Cement
Cement producers and inventors around the world are
acutely aware of this issue and are working to find
solutions with smaller carbon footprints.
The Cement Sustainability Initiative (CSI), in
conjunction with the International Energy Agency
(IEA), has developed a target of 370 kg of CO
2
/kg
of portland cement as an acceptable 2050 target.
1
This target is in line with a 2˚C temperature rise
scenario (2DS). Table 1 demonstrates the roadmap’s
intermediate and 2050 targets and compares them
with the 2014 actual situation.
One issue that has not yet been resolved is
how the CO
2
targets will be met. Will there be
an aggregate target by company, where one
plant may be over the target, as long as another
plant is sufficiently under the target to bring the
average emissions back on track? This approach
appears the most practical, as new plants will
have a significant advantage for adapting to new
technologies. However, this practice may be difficult
to implement across regional and international
borders.
Today, it would appear that international
cement producers are leaning in the direction of
global CO
2
reductions, as they report their emissions
and progress on a global basis. Many jurisdictions,
however, are setting up their own systems to
incentivise lower carbon footprints and there is little
commonality between them. The incentives and
disincentives can vary widely, leading to the uneven
application of new technologies. Exactly how the
final targets will be set and costs/benefits applied
across political boundaries is yet to be determined.
This leaves cement producers in a quandary as to
Table 1.
CSI cement roadmap targets: 2˚C Scenario.
1
Year
2014
2030
2040
2050
Best
Cement production (tpy)
4171
4250
4429
4682
NA
Thermal energy consumption per tonne of clinker
(GJ/t)
3.5
3.3
3.2
3.1
2.9
Electricity intensity of cement (kWh/t of cement)
91
87
83
79
80
Biogenic fuels total
5.6% 17.5% 25.1% 30% 100%
Clinker-to-cement ratio
65% 64% 63% 60% 35%
Carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) (t stored)
0
14
173
552
NA
Direct process CO
2
intensity of cement (t of CO
2
/t of
cement)*
0.34
0.33
0.3
0.24
?
Direct energy-related CO
2
intensity of cement (t of
CO
2
/t of cement)*
0.2
0.19
0.16
0.13
?
*Includes CCS impact on emissions.
Table 2.
Most recent results reported for selected cement producers according to their sustainability reports.
Progress/targets
2DS LafargeHolcim
6
HeidelbergCement
7
CEMEX
5
Taiheyo
4
UltraTech
3
CRH
2
Year
2050 2017
2017
2017
2016
2016/17 2017
Thermal energy
consumption per
tonne of clinker
(GJ/t)
3.1 3.498
3.62
3.913
3.306
2.966
3.668
Electricity intensity
of cement (kWh/t
cement)
79 99
NR*
120
NR*
NR*
NR*
Alternative fuels
total**
NA 18.5% 13.1%
15.9% 11.3% 1.9% 27.5%
Biomass fuel usage
30% 6.3%
7.8%
10.3% 1.8% 0.4% 11.1%
Clinker:cement ratio
60% 73%
75.3%
78.4% NR*
76.8% 77.5%
Tonne of CO
2
emissions (net) per
tonne of cement
0.37 0.581
0.6092
0.636
0.683
0.632
0.572
*Not reported.
**Excludes biomass fuel.