Next Generation SCM, a provider of low carbon supplementary cementitious material (SCM), and Nizak Mining Company, fully owned by Saudi Exchange-listed City Cement (Al Abdullatif Group), have entered into a joint venture to produce and use a first-of-its-kind low carbon concrete solution in Saudi Arabia.

The pioneering process to produce the premium SCM is highly energy efficient, needing only a sixth of the fuel required for traditional cement production and operating at much lower temperatures. This lowers operating costs and generates significantly fewer emissions. 

The pioneering Danish company CemGreen has developed and patented the CemTower technology which has shown impressive results, and the joint venture will introduce and expand the use of the CemTower Technology in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). In the existing factory in Denmark, the technology can produce calcined clay while generating only 8kg of CO2/t, which is a 99 per cent reduction compared to the IEA average of 600kg/t for cement.  

A cubic metre of concrete traditionally carries 210kg of CO2. The use of premium calcined clay SCM made by the Next Generation SCM and City Cement joint venture can reduce the carbon emissions from standardised concrete by up to 58 per cent. 

This joint venture between Next Generation SCM and City Cement will be the first producer of premium calcined clay SCM in Saudi Arabia. The first factory will be built in Riyadh, with the aim to begin production by the 3Q25. It has an annual production target of 350,000t in the first year, and 700,000t in year two. 

Christian Husum, CEO and Founder of Next Generation SCM said “There are over 4bn people who live in urban areas right now, and that is going to increase by 2bn over the next 30 years. This is a massive, global building project, which is equivalent to building an additional New York City every month. Those cities will also need the infrastructure to cope with an influx of people and there is no way to do that without concrete. There is also no way for our planet to cope with concrete production at that scale unless we find a way of producing it without generating enormous amounts of carbon emissions. Now, there is a way. This joint venture will put the process into practice to bring about a revolution in how we build everything from stadiums to skyscrapers in Saudi Arabia, the Middle East, and then the world.”