Cement production in Poland increased by two per cent in 2016, according to the Polish Association of Cement Producers. In 2017 cement demand is expected to grow by 2.5 per cent to 16.1Mt thanks to healthy housing and transport infrastructure construction markets, the association said.

However, its future also depends on the EU’s CO2 emissions policies, the association added. With 14 plants, owned by the subsidiaries of eight international cement producers, Poland’s cement sector points out that it uses more than 1.4Mta of alternative fuels, including 1Mta of municipal waste. The industry says these fuels should be removed from the EU’s emissions trading scheme (ETS) and European cement manufacturers should be given free emission rights for energy-intensive industries.