Technology roadmap: low-carbon transition in the cement industry
The cement sector is the third-largest industrial energy consumer and the second-largest industrial CO2 emitter globally. Rising global population and urbanisation patterns, coupled with infrastructure development needs, drive up the demand for cement and concrete and increase pressure to accelerate action in reducing the carbon footprint of cement production. Under a scenario that considers announced carbon mitigation commitments and energy efficiency targets by countries, the cement sector would increase its direct CO2 emissions just 4% globally by 2050, for an expected growth of 12% in cement production over the same period. However, more ambitious action would be needed to achieve global climate goals. This Technology Roadmap builds on the long-standing collaboration of the IEA with the Cement Sustainability Initiative (CSI) of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). It provides an update of the Cement Technology Roadmap 2009: Carbon Emissions Reductions up to 2050, and sets a strategy for the cement sector to achieve the decoupling of cement production growth from related direct CO2 emissions through improving energy efficiency, switching to fuels that are less carbon intensive, reducing the clinker to cement ratio, and implementing emerging and innovative technologies such as carbon capture. The report therefore outlines a detailed action plan for specific stakeholders to 2050 as a reference and a source of inspiration for international and national policy makers to support evidence-based decisions and regulations.