Interview: Ian Riley, CEO of World Cement Association, shares the industry’s journey to net zero

Give us overview of the current state of the cement industry in the Middle East and Africa in terms of carbon emission reduction and sustainability.

As we set out at last year’s World Cement Association (WCA) conference, the carbon emissions of cement producers in the MENA region is rather high and we see many opportunities to reduce carbon emissions while also reducing costs.

Our annual conference, which will be held on October 24 and 25 in Dubai, is an opportunity for cement producers from different regions to meet face to face and to share best practices and new ideas on tackling climate change. This year, we will highlight the progress made in reducing CO2 emissions.

Our WCA Awards for Innovation, Climate Action and Model Plant all highlight the opportunities to improve operations and implement sustainable technologies.
We have award winners from the MENA region as well as China, Southeast Asia and South Asia who will share examples of what can be done and how they achieved it.

Delegates to the conference will also be invited to visit these plants.

What are the most accessible strategies for cement producers in the region to reduce their carbon footprint?

Cement producers everywhere have three levers to reduce CO2 emissions that save costs as well as reducing CO2 emissions.

The levers are: (1) improving energy efficiency; (2) switching from high carbon to low carbon fuels and electricity; and (3) reducing the proportion of clinker in cement.

For each of these there are many technologies. For existing plants the two most important steps are switching from fossil fuels (usually coal) to waste derived fuels and biomass (called alternative fuels or AF). One of the panels at out conference will share their experience of overcoming the challenges and increasing the portion of AF. Increasing the proportion of supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) in cement is the subject of another conference session.

Different locations have different AFR and SCMs available, so the details of how these strategies are implemented varies from country to country.

What challenges does the industry face in securing funding for decarbonisation initiatives?

The main challenge for the industry is not securing funding but rather securing a reasonable financial return on sustainability investments.

How can cement producers in the region maintain profitability while addressing industry challenges and sustainability goals?

The main drivers of cement demand are population growth, government investment, urbanisation and real estate development. Overall, the outlook for the construction materials sector in MENA is positive. The combination of strong economic growth, government investment, and population growth is expected to drive sustained demand for construction materials and services in the coming years.

The challenge is to maintain sustainable pricing in the face of over-capacity. There are lessons from Europe on how a carbon emissions trading system can help this while at the same time providing incentives to reduce emissions.

Does strategic M&A play a role in the cement industry’s profitability?

M&A can be an important driver of profitability, but the positive impact of industry consolidation cannot be taken for granted.

We will have a panel at the WCA conference at which several companies with experience in this area will discuss how to make M&A a successful profit improvement strategy.

How can governments support the cement industry’s sustainability goals, and how does WCA collaborate with them?

For hard to abate sectors such as cement the role of government is indispensable in reaching net zero. Regulation plays a key role in creating incentives to decarbonise. Governments should introduce carbon pricing schemes and should ensure that the carbon price is high enough to drive change. The experience in Europe shows that this can create a more profitable sustainable industry.

In addition, governments should create a market for low carbon cement and concrete through preferential government procurement policy and encourage product standards that focus on performance and do not restrict the user of greener materials.

Can you highlight technologies adopted in the cement industry for energy efficiency and emission reduction?

We have had some very interesting submissions to WCA’s innovation and model plant awards that combine various new technologies to bring about a step change in performance. The best new plants are capable of clinker production at emissions at least 20 per cent lower than those built 25 years ago. With increasing use of SCM’s we can expect cement emissions to continue to fall.

We estimate that carbon emissions from cement in the MENA region could be cut by almost half by deploying the technologies that are already proven elsewhere and that would yield a cost reduction. Beyond these traditional levers, the cement industry is starting to execute carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects, especially in Europe and North America.

Given sustainability goals, how do you envision the cement industry evolving, and what’s WCA’s role in this?

One of the most interesting developments is the excellent profitability of the European cement industry, despite high carbon prices. This has surprised many cement producers as they expected carbon pricing to depress profits Another encouraging trend is customer-driven demand for more sustainable solutions, including greater circularity and lower carbon. If governments take the lead in this area, we could see rapid development of markets for low carbon recycled products.

We can expect to see a great deal of change over the next decade in terms of the products demanded by our customers, improving plant efficiency and reducing emissions. The World Cement Association catalyses this change by keeping our members abreast of the latest technology and facilitating the sharing of best practices. We encourage members to respond the expectation of customers and society at large.