Cemex and Coolbrook to work on electric cement kiln

Cemex announced that it expects to work with Coolbrook to test their patented technology that uses electricity in place of fossil fuels in the heating process of cement production.

The companies have reached a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to combine their expertise to develop optimal electric process heating solutions that can be applied in the cement manufacturing process.

Coolbrook's Roto Dynamic Heater (“RDH”) technology aims to revolutionise cement production by replacing fossil fuels traditionally used to heat the kilns with electricity.

"The electrification of the heating and calcination process of cement production is an important step towards decarbonising our cement operations," said Roberto Ponguta, Cemex vice president of global operations, technical and energy. “To the extent that we can use electricity from renewable sources, we can eliminate carbon emissions related to the heating of cement kilns. We are constantly looking for the best technologies and most promising partnerships to meet our Climate Action targets. Our collaboration with Coolbrook is another example of this." 

Ilpo Kuokkanen, executive chairman of Coolbrook, said: "Coolbrook has set a target to build a comprehensive ecosystem around its revolutionary technology and to test its use in as many industrial processes as fast as possible. Together with Cemex, we can bring the technology to cement production and achieve significant emission reductions in one of the most energy and CO₂-intensive industrial processes. We are truly excited to start this effort with Cemex, who is a global leader in sustainable construction materials and solutions." 

The companies expect this groundbreaking technology to be ready for commercial use at an industrial scale in 2024. The companies expect to jointly evaluate the best production site to test and develop this technology. This initiative is part of Cemex’s roadmap to achieve its ambitious climate action goals under its Future in Action programme.