Low-carbon cement production to begin at new Welsh plant

A UK STARTUP has opened a low-carbon cement production facility in North Wales which it claims will result in an 85% reduction in emissions compared to traditional Portland cement production.

Material Evolution says production of each tonne of their new cement – called MevoCem – will release no more than 200 kg CO2e.

The Middlesbrough-based company first produced “ultra-low carbon cement” in October and plans to scale up production at the Wrexham plant to 120,000 t/y.

The cement industry alone accounts for around 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions, a greater proportion than any single country in the world other than the US and China. A report by the World Economic Forum in September found that unless cement production becomes more sustainable, its emissions would more than double to 3.8bn t/y by the middle of the century.

Material Evolution says their new production method uses no heat or kilns. Instead, it uses a patented process called alkali-fusion. The Wrexham plant is on the same site as concrete block manufacturer CCP, a subsidiary of British construction company SigmaRoc, who contributed to a £15m (US$19m) investment in Material Evolution last year.

While cement only constitutes around 10–15% of concrete by mass, the remainder being water and aggregate, cement production accounts for around 80% of the total emissions from concrete production. 

Material Evolution co-founder and chief operating officer Sam Clark said: “This launch takes us one step closer to achieving our goal of removing one gigaton of CO2 by 2040. We hope this facility proves that cement and concrete decarbonisation is not only a possibility in the future – it’s a reality on the ground today.

“We look forward to working with government agencies, trade bodies and concrete specifiers to join us on our mission to realise the green transition in the UK.”

A spokesperson for SigmaRoc said: “This project aligns with SigmaRoc’s commitment to sustainable development, and we are proud to support Material Evolution in driving innovation that transforms the industry.”