Rugby Cement in the UK wants to trial a fuel made from household rubbish which is hoped will cut greenhouse gas emissions by up to 10 per cent. Cemex hopes to burn Climafuel, which contains paper, plastics and wood, in its furnaces to make cement. The Climafuel will be mixed with petcoke in the company’s kiln at the plant in Lawford Road, Rugby.

The company estimates it could cut their use of fossil fuels by up to a third, cutting carbon dioxide emissions by up to 100,000tpa. "This has a double benefit to the environment by cutting the amount of fossil fuel we use, reducing carbon dioxide emissions.

"It also makes positive use of material that would otherwise be incinerated or go to a landfill site and would be wasted," said David Evans, Cemex director of sustainability. He added the fuel would reduce costs helping the company remain competitive. He said a three-month public consultation period would take place before the trial to try to address any concerns of local people.