Mahendra Singhi, CEO of Dalmia Bharat India, has expressed his confidence that the cement sector can transition from a 'hard-to-abate' to a 'possible-to-abate' sector, as he delivered the keynote presentation on the opening day of the Cemtech virtual conference with the central theme of 'Decarbonising the cement industry'.

Speaking during the first session of the new global forum, Mr Singhi said believes that “clean and green is profitable and sustainable." Providing encouragement to the sector and stressing the importance of a positive mindset, he said: "We all together have to convert as a sector, from grey to green."

Highlighting key areas he noted the use of waste materials, waste heat recovery, use of waste as an alternative fuel, use of renewable electricity as well as thermal and electrical efficiency improvements. He added that substantial development have been made in the the last few months by the Global Cement and Concrete Association and CEMBUREAU who have come foreward to provide carbon neutral concrete by 2050.

Dalmia Cement itself has set out one of the most ambitious visions by a cement manufacturer – not only responding to calls for a low-carbon future, but aiming to be carbon negative by 2040.  Having been globally ranked number 1 by CDP (formerly Carbon Disclosure Project) for business readiness to a low-carbon transition, the company has set out a number of measures to take its sustainability leadership to the next level.

Mr Singhi highlighted that Dalmia Cement’s carbon negative commitments include 100 per cent renewable power under a fossil-free electricity initiative by 2030 and double energy productivity by 2030. A pivotal role will be played by capturing process CO₂ emissions. Last year Dalmia signed an MoU with Carbon Clean Solutions (UK) for the construction of a large-scale carbon capture facility at its cement plant in Tamil Nadu, India. The approach is to set up scalable large demonstration projects on carbon capture with multiple utilisation streams.

Pathways to a sustainable future

At a time when initiatives to reduce the environmental impact of cement manufacturing have seen accelerated innovation and investment, the four-day Cemtech virtual conference features presentations on the key ambitions, actions and advances by the industry as it continues on its journey towards decarbonisation.

With nearly 2000 cement professionals from 110 countries registered for the industry’s biggest event of the year, Session 1 also includes presentations by Dinah McLeod, chief executive of the Global Cement and Concrete Association, and Magali Anderson, chief sustainability officer of LafargeHolcim, highlighting key commitments and strategies by the sector.

Session 2, which begins today at 14.00h (London), will stock of the latest global cement market, corporate and trading trends, as well as the industry’s sustainability targets and contributions. Expert commentary and analysis will be delivered by Exane BNP Paribas (UK), Cement Distribution Consultants (The Netherlands), Tony Hadley African Advisory and Jim O’Brien CSR (Ireland).

Register for free at: Cemtech.com/2020

The event continues this week through Thursday, 24 September, exploring the themes of:

•  Advances in co-processing and alternative fuels
• Clinker reduction, alternative raw materials and new binder concepts
• Bringing renewable energy to the cement industry
• Carbon capture, storage and reuse
• The digital plant
• Energy and process optimisation.

Published under Cement News