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Released April 28, 2025 | GALWAY, IRELAND
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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--Heidelberg Materials (Maidenhead, England) has received the green light to build a carbon capture plant at its Padeswood cement works in north Wales.
The project at the 1 million-tonne-per-year plant will aim to capture up to 800,000 tonnes per year of CO2 for storage via the HyNet North West pipeline that will run under Liverpool Bay. The project is expected to cost around US$440 million and will, according to Heildelberg, be the first carbon capture-enabled cement works in the U.K. Assuming all consents are given and an industrial carbon capture contract with the government is signed, work could start later this year, creating 500 temporary jobs and 50 permanent roles on completion. On commissioning in 2029, it will be the U.K.'s first net-zero cement plant and Heidelberg will market the resulting product as "evoZero" cement, "a near-zero emissions material for the low-carbon construction economy".
"This is fantastic news and a huge step forward for our Padeswood CCS project," said Simon Willis, chief executive officer of Heidelberg Materials U.K.. "Cement is essential to the U.K.'s transition to net zero. It is fundamental to the development of everything from new offshore wind farms to low carbon infrastructure, and the thousands of green jobs that these projects will create."
Heidelberg noted: "Cement is the key component of concrete and is an essential construction material with no viable alternative. But cement production is carbon intensive, with a large proportion of these emissions coming from the chemical process involved in making cement, so they cannot be reduced by using low carbon or renewable energy sources. The only way to produce the cement that the U.K. needs, without emitting large amounts of carbon, is to capture and store these emissions before they enter the atmosphere."
The U.K. has 10 cement production plants, and concrete, both ready-mixed and precast, is produced from around 1,000 sites nationwide with 90 million tonnes used per year. Concrete and cement currently account for around 1.5% of U.K. carbon dioxide emissions. Decarbonising the cement industry is a growing sector in the U.K. and also across Europe. Industrial Info is tracking more than 220 carbon-related and energy transition projects in the European cement manufacturing sector, with a combined investment value of almost US$12 billion. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Project Database can click here for the reports.
Heidelberg is one of more than 40 industrial companies looking to reduce emissions by working as part of the HyNet North West initiative, one the U.K.'s largest industrial decarbonisation projects. Hynet aims to capture 1 million tonnes of CO2 emissions per year--the equivalent of taking more than 600,000 cars off the road. The initial phase of HyNet North West is based on the production of hydrogen from natural gas at the Stanlow refinery and will involve the development of a new hydrogen pipeline and the creation of CCS infrastructure. Industrial Info is tracking 43 projects associated with HyNet North West, spanning numerous industrial sectors, worth more than US$2.4 billion. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Project Database can click here for the reports.
Last year the U.K. government pledged almost £22 billion (US$28.8 billion) in funding for the country's two leading carbon capture and storage (CCS) initiatives in the north of England: East Coast Cluster in the Teesside and Humber regions of northeast England and the HyNet initiative in the Merseyside area of northwest England and north Wales. The regions form the heartland of the U.K.'s industry, which is responsible for most of the country's CO2 emissions across a wide range of industries, including manufacturing, steelmaking, shipping, chemicals, refining and cement making. For additional information, see October 14, 2024, article--U.K. Pledges $28 Billion to Build Carbon Capture Industry.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 Trillion (USD).
The project at the 1 million-tonne-per-year plant will aim to capture up to 800,000 tonnes per year of CO2 for storage via the HyNet North West pipeline that will run under Liverpool Bay. The project is expected to cost around US$440 million and will, according to Heildelberg, be the first carbon capture-enabled cement works in the U.K. Assuming all consents are given and an industrial carbon capture contract with the government is signed, work could start later this year, creating 500 temporary jobs and 50 permanent roles on completion. On commissioning in 2029, it will be the U.K.'s first net-zero cement plant and Heidelberg will market the resulting product as "evoZero" cement, "a near-zero emissions material for the low-carbon construction economy".
"This is fantastic news and a huge step forward for our Padeswood CCS project," said Simon Willis, chief executive officer of Heidelberg Materials U.K.. "Cement is essential to the U.K.'s transition to net zero. It is fundamental to the development of everything from new offshore wind farms to low carbon infrastructure, and the thousands of green jobs that these projects will create."
Heidelberg noted: "Cement is the key component of concrete and is an essential construction material with no viable alternative. But cement production is carbon intensive, with a large proportion of these emissions coming from the chemical process involved in making cement, so they cannot be reduced by using low carbon or renewable energy sources. The only way to produce the cement that the U.K. needs, without emitting large amounts of carbon, is to capture and store these emissions before they enter the atmosphere."
The U.K. has 10 cement production plants, and concrete, both ready-mixed and precast, is produced from around 1,000 sites nationwide with 90 million tonnes used per year. Concrete and cement currently account for around 1.5% of U.K. carbon dioxide emissions. Decarbonising the cement industry is a growing sector in the U.K. and also across Europe. Industrial Info is tracking more than 220 carbon-related and energy transition projects in the European cement manufacturing sector, with a combined investment value of almost US$12 billion. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Project Database can click here for the reports.
Heidelberg is one of more than 40 industrial companies looking to reduce emissions by working as part of the HyNet North West initiative, one the U.K.'s largest industrial decarbonisation projects. Hynet aims to capture 1 million tonnes of CO2 emissions per year--the equivalent of taking more than 600,000 cars off the road. The initial phase of HyNet North West is based on the production of hydrogen from natural gas at the Stanlow refinery and will involve the development of a new hydrogen pipeline and the creation of CCS infrastructure. Industrial Info is tracking 43 projects associated with HyNet North West, spanning numerous industrial sectors, worth more than US$2.4 billion. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Project Database can click here for the reports.
Last year the U.K. government pledged almost £22 billion (US$28.8 billion) in funding for the country's two leading carbon capture and storage (CCS) initiatives in the north of England: East Coast Cluster in the Teesside and Humber regions of northeast England and the HyNet initiative in the Merseyside area of northwest England and north Wales. The regions form the heartland of the U.K.'s industry, which is responsible for most of the country's CO2 emissions across a wide range of industries, including manufacturing, steelmaking, shipping, chemicals, refining and cement making. For additional information, see October 14, 2024, article--U.K. Pledges $28 Billion to Build Carbon Capture Industry.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 Trillion (USD).
