New CSI-IEA cement technology roadmap offers strategy for 24% cut in CO2 emissions

The Cement Sustainability Initiative (CSI) and International Energy Agency (IEA) have published a new technology roadmap, Low-Carbon Transition in the Cement Industry, to update the first global cement roadmap produced in 2009.

The roadmap provides a combination of technology and policy solutions to reducing direct carbon emissions by the cement industry by 24 per cent below current levels by 2050. It outlines policy priorities and regulatory recommendations as well as investment stimulating mechanisms. In addition, it describes technical challenges in terms of research, development and demonstration.

It aims to identify and develop international collaborative efforts and provide evidence for public and private sector decision-makers to move towards a more sustainable cement sector that can contribute to long-term climate goals.

Driven by an increase in global population and urbanisation, worldwide cement production is expected to grow by 12-23 per cent by 2050. Despite increasing efficiencies, direct carbon emissions from the cement industry are expected to rise by four per cent globally by 2050 under the IEA Reference Technology Scenario (RTS), a base case scenario that takes into account existing energy and climate commitments under the Paris Agreement. If the IEA’s more ambitious 2°C Scenario (2DS) by 2050 is to be met, significantly greater efforts to reduce emissions will be required from cement producers with an increase in investment. Governments are also to play a key role in developing policy and regulatory mechanisms that unlock the private finance necessary for such a boost in investment.

“The cement industry is a major part of the global economy, but also an important source of global energy demand and carbon emissions. It is therefore essential that policy-makers and industry work together to ensure best-practices are adopted that put the industry on a long-term sustainable path that is compatible with our long-term climate goals,” said Dr Fatih Birol, the IEA’s executive director.

Philippe Fonta, CSI MD, added, “The CSI is happy and proud to have developed this roadmap update in partnership with the IEA. The first exercise carried out in 2009 had demonstrated its added value to help the sector identify solutions and enablers to reduce its CO2 emissions and it was essential to adjust this projection with the latest robust emissions data from the CSI’s Getting The Numbers right (GNR) database and the potential of latest technologies developed by the European Cement Research Academy (ECRA).”