Editorial comment
The last few weeks have been pretty eventful in terms of cement industry news with major, potentially industry defining changes from several of the leading players in the sector.
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Back on 17 – 19 June, Heidelberg Materials officially opened their landmark CCS facility at the Brevik cement plant in Norway. As part of the Norwegian government’s ‘Longship’ project, Brevik CCS represents the cement industry’s first fully operational, industrial scale carbon capture and storage facility. The Brevik CCS facility will capture around 400 000 tpy of CO2, representing 50% of the plant’s total emissions – and equivalent to the amount of CO2 generated by roughly 150 000 round-trip flights between Frankfurt and New York. The captured CO2 is to be liquefied and transported via the Northern Lights initiative (a collaboration between Equinor, Shell, & Total) for permanent storage under the North Sea.
Whilst there are many ongoing CCUS projects taking place at cement plants around the world, the launch of Brevik is a significant milestone for the industry. Not just because having a functional, industrial-scale facility shows that the technology works and is available today, but because it also shows that the cement industry is taking the challenge of decarbonisation seriously. The launch should also give confidence to others (both in cement and elsewhere) looking to invest in their own CCUS projects – a prospect that can certainly seem daunting, given the complexity involved. Dr Dominik von Achten, Chairman of the Managing Board of Heidelberg Materials, summed up the importance of Brevik as follows: “[Brevik] marks a historic milestone and tectonic shift in the built environment. The opening of Brevik CCS is a tremendous technological achievement that will serve as a blueprint for entire industries as we progress towards net zero and into a new era of sustainable construction.”
Another major announcement came with the news that FLSmidth has secured a buyer for the cement arm of its business. One of the industry’s leading players, FLSmdith’s cement business has been in operation for more than 140 years. Whilst FLSmidth will move to become a pure-play supplier of technology and services to the mining industry, FLSmidth Cement will be sold to Pacific Avenue Capital Partners, a global private equity firm. Chris Sznewajs, Founder and Managing Partner, at Pacific Avenue Capital Partners, stated: “The Cement division is an excellent fit within our portfolio given our focus on acquiring market leading companies. We […] look forward to providing the necessary resources to support continued growth and value creation in partnership with management.”
And last, but by no means least, Holcim has completed the spin-off of its North American business, now named Amrize. The independent, publicly traded company plans to capitalise on North America’s attractive construction market driven by long term mega-trends from infrastructure modernisation and onshoring of manufacturing to data centre expansion and the opportunity to bridge the housing gap. As always, World Cement will keep you updated with all the latest news. Enjoy the issue.
