A public footpath in Padeswood will be permanently re-routed to allow construction of a major carbon capture facility at the Heidelberg Materials cement works. Flintshire planners have approved the diversion of the 473m right of way, which currently runs past the site, onto a nearby stretch of the dismantled Chester–Denbigh railway line.
The new facility, central to Heidelberg’s drive for net zero emissions by 2050, will capture up to 800,000tpa of carbon dioxide. Instead of being released into the atmosphere, the gas will be fed into the Hynet pipeline and stored a kilometre beneath the Irish Sea.
Cement has been produced at Padeswood since 1949, with major upgrades in 2005 and subsequent investment reducing energy use by 30 per cent. The carbon capture scheme is expected to create 50 permanent jobs and up to 500 during construction, with Heidelberg aiming to deliver net zero cement production from 2029.
