Boral secures AUD24.5m government funding for kiln infrastructure project

Boral Ltd has successfully secured AUD24.5m (US$15.4m) in government funding for a new cement kiln infrastructure project, which will enable the leading construction materials company to significantly reduce its CO₂ emissions arising from cement manufacturing by up to 100,000tpa, based on predicted production rates.

The kiln feed optimisation project at Berrima Cement Works plays a key role in Boral’s broader decarbonisation pathway by reducing process emissions, the largest and most-difficult-to-abate emissions source in cement manufacturing.

The funding announcement was made by Minister for Climate Change and Energy, the Hon Chris Bowen MP, at Berrima Cement Works in NSW’s Southern Highlands, which is a strategically significant site for Boral and to Australia’s manufacturing capability, responsible for supplying up to 40 per cent of cement in NSW and the ACT. The grant is from the government’s Powering the Regions Fund, aimed at supporting projects that will enable the decarbonisation of existing industries and contribute to Australia’s emission reduction targets.

The funding will supplement Boral’s significant capital investment into a new specialised grinding circuit and supporting infrastructure at the Berrima Cement Works.

The integration of the specialised grinding circuit will enable Boral to substantially increase the proportion of alternative raw materials (ARMs) in kiln feed to up to 23 per cent, up from its current nine per cent, and subsequently lower the amount of limestone used. As an additional benefit, ARMs also require lower heating temperatures compared with limestone, and therefore, lower energy intensity. 

Boral plans to use ARMs derived from a range of by-products from the steel manufacturing process and industrial waste, including granulated blast furnace slag, steel slag, cement fibre board, fly ash, and fine aggregates from recycled concrete.

The funding will enable the company to progress to the next phase of detailed process designs for front-end engineering, followed by procurement, construction, installation, and commissioning. It is expected to be fully operational in 2028.

Dr Ali Nezhad, head of innovation and sustainability at Boral, says: “In terms of the resulting emissions intensity of the manufactured clinker, the Project will result in up to 11 per cent reduction in clinker emission intensity, nine per cent attributable to a reduction in calcination emissions and two per cent attributable to thermal efficiency gains.”