Lafarge continues to reduce its Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Registers a Third ’’Clean Development Mechanism’’
An initiative launched by Lafarge in India with the aim of reducing its greenhouse gas emissions has been registered as a Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) by the CDM Executive Board, in line with the framework established by the Kyoto Protocol.
The project, launched at Lafarge’s Arasmeta cement plant located in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh, involves replacing a proportion of the clinker (a component of cement) with fly ash, a by-product of coal-fired power plants.
This process makes it possible to reduce the CO2 emissions linked to the cement production process. It also contributes to the elimination of industrial waste by recycling this directly in the cement production process.
This CDM will therefore make a lasting contribution to the fight against climate change by enabling an annual saving of 70,000 tonnes of CO2.
Solutions to help fight climate change
This initiative is the third CDM registered by Lafarge. The first such project, registered in May 2005, is a wind farm in Morocco powering the Tetouan cement plant by supplying 50% of its electricity requirements. A second CDM was registered in Malaysia in April 2006 and involves replacing part of the coal used as fuel with palm kernel shell biomass. These three CDM projects alone deliver a saving of around 160,000 tonnes of CO2 per year. Other CDM projects are currently being considered and should be announced in the coming months.
These projects have been launched within the framework of the voluntary commitment made by Lafarge in 2001 as part of its partnership with WWF to reduce worldwide CO2 emissions per tonne of cement by 20% between 1990 and 2010.
Lafarge’s efforts to reduce CO2 emissions resulted in a 15%(1) reduction in the Group’s worldwide CO2 emissions per tonne of cement at the end of 2006, compared to 1990.
(1) Figures not yet audited. Figures audited by a WWF-approved auditor will be published in the 2006 Sustainability Report, to be published in May 2007.
Published under Cement News
