TCL engages in low-carbon cement sales

Trinidad Cement Ltd's (Cemex group) ECO Cement brand has achieved the Cemex Vertua seal, the group’s global standard for products that offer a reduction in carbon emissions ranging from 15 to over 40 per cent during production, TCL officials state. However, TCL has a hard battle ahead to convince the construction industry to move towards low-carbon cements.

The low-carbon product has actually been on the local market since 5 June 2020. It retails at TTD43/bag (US$6.32/bag), and is available at hardware stores island-wide. Regular cement costs between TTD43-45/bag.

Reshma Gooljar-­Singh, sales distributor segment manager at TCL, said climate change has been a priority of Cemex for many years, and now the company has set a new, more aggressive target to be below 475kg CO₂, an approximate 40 per cent reduction in CO₂ emissions by 2030.

“Achieving the Vertua... low carbon by design seal is a strong testimony to this and the local cement manufacturer’s attentiveness to climate change,” she said.

TCL Country Manager, Guillermo Rojo, said research and development for the ECO Cement cost TTD500,000. He said the biggest hurdle might not be coming up with low-carbon solutions but getting the construction industry to adopt them. He admitted that clients were understandably cautious about using new building materials that promote lower emissions, mistaking them for having reduced strength.

"That’s why educating customers on the use of this cement is so important in order for them to understand the benefits of this ECO Cement," Mr Rojo said.

It may be one of the hardest industries to decarbonise, but Mr Rojo hopes to see trust building in the product.