The inaugural Innovation in Industrial Carbon Capture Conference was held in Oupeye, Belgium, on 7-8 February. Over 130 delegates attended the two-day event organised by the Low Emissions Intensity Lime and Cement (LEILAC) Consortium.

LEILAC has set up an industrial project with EUR12m of EU funding to demonstrate technology designed to reduce carbon emissions from cement and lime industries. As part of the conference programme, the official groundbreaking ceremony of the project was held at HeidelbergCement’s Lixhe facility. This marked the commencement of construction at the pilot plant, which will feature Calix’s carbon capture technology for two years.

"For years, the HeidelbergCement Group, parent company of CBR, has been working hard to continuously decrease its environmental footprint. Thanks to these efforts, the company has already come a long way to reduce the carbon emissions from its production process. However, to remain competitive and to meet the climate change goals, further improvement is necessary," said Christoph Streicher, general manager, HeidelbergCement Benelux.

"We believe, carbon capture is an important part of the solution and that’s the reason why we signed up for this ambitious project and are very happy to support this conference," said Mr Streicher.