HeidelbergCement takes the next step towards CO₂ capture and storage (CCS) in Brevik, Norway
Yesterday, HeidelbergCement’s Norwegian subsidiary Norcem and the engineering company Aker Solutions signed an agreement for the supply of a CO₂ capture, liquification and intermediate storage facility at the Norcem Brevik cement plant in Norway. Using Aker Solutions’ Advanced Carbon Capture (ACC) technology, Norcem is planning to realise the first industrial-scale carbon capture plant at a cement production facility in the world.
"We are pleased to see our CCS project in Brevik move into the next phase,” says Dr Dominik von Achten, Chairman of the Managing Board of HeidelbergCement. “This agreement is an important step to considerably reduce otherwise unavoidable process-related greenhouse gas emissions.” Ernest Jelito, member of the Managing Board of HeidelbergCement responsible for Northern and Eastern Europe-Central Asia and R&D, says: “With this project, we want to demonstrate that CCS is a feasible, safe, and economic technology.”
The agreement between Norcem and Aker Solutions is subject to the Norwegian government selecting the Brevik project for state funding and the resolution of the parliament to realise the Northern Lights project. If the project is carried out, Brevik could become the world’s first large-scale carbon capture plant of the cement industry, with 400,000 tonnes of CO₂ captured annually and transported for permanent storage.
HeidelbergCement has committed itself to reduce its specific net CO₂ emissions per tonne of cement by 30% compared to 1990 by 2030. This target has been approved by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and is in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement, making HeidelbergCement the first cement company worldwide to have approved science-based CO₂ reduction targets. By 2019, HeidelbergCement has already achieved a reduction of 22%. The company has announced that by 2030, 80% of its research and development budget will be spent on the development of sustainable products. HeidelbergCement will realise its vision of carbon-neutral concrete by 2050 at the latest.
About HeidelbergCement
HeidelbergCement is one of the world’s largest integrated manufacturers of building materials, with leading market positions in aggregates, cement, and ready-mixed concrete. The Group employs around 55,000 people at over 3,000 locations in more than 50 countries.
