CB Green and ECOCEM announce JV for decarbonisation

CB Green, a division of Groupe CB focussed on delivering low carbon and circular economy solutions for the concrete and construction industries, and Ecocem, Europe’s leading independent provider of low-carbon cement technologies, have agreed a long term cooperation agreement to establish a new joint venture which will support the scale-up of Ecocem’s low-carbon ACT technology by 2025, and CB Green’s ambitions to deliver low carbon solutions to the construction industry.

The joint venture will build a grinding mill at Ecocem’s plant in Dunkirk and deliver a long-term agreement to supply and grind limestone filler, a key component in ACT, Ecocem’s low clinker cement technology. This venture will accelerate the availability of low carbon cement technologies in Western Europe. Focussing production in northern France will allow Ecocem to supply ACT to all the concrete players located in the key markets from Paris to London and Amsterdam.

Both companies require significant increased grinding capacity to support their ambitions. The mill is expected to enter into production by mid-2025, with the ambition to reach full capacity by 2030. The joint venture is expected to gradually invest over EUR60m and produce 600,000t of high-quality limestone filler per year by 2030. The joint venture will produce  high-quality limestone fillers essential for low-carbon cements, which the companies claim can reduce clinker content by 70 per cent.

Founder and Managing Director of Ecocem, Donal O’Riain, said: “This long-term cooperation agreement with CB Green marks a major milestone in our work to scale ACT, our low-carbon cement technology and deliver on our commitment to help the cement industry cost-effectively decarbonise by 50 per cent by 2030. It secures production of fillers and access to high quality limestone and is an important next step to ensuring that our ACT technology can be distributed at scale and start delivering on its potential to reduce CO₂ emissions by up to 70 per cent. Technology is no longer the issue, scale and speed are what matters now. 

Commenting on this landmark agreement, Gilles Poulain, CEO of Groupe CB, continued: “This partnership between CB Green and Ecocem signals a major step forward. We are united in our ambitions to support rapid decarbonisation and scale a range of solutions, including low carbon cements.”  

Ecocem’s ACT technology was unveiled in late 2022. A breakthrough cement technology, it combines a range of technical innovations with the use of widely available low-carbon materials to decarbonise the production of cement by as much as 70 per cent, while enhancing the strength and durability of the concrete it is used to manufacture.