Norcem is very pleased with the Norwegian government’s proposal to support carbon capture in Brevik
Norcem and HeidelbergCement are delighted with the Norwegian government’s proposal to support the construction of a carbon capture plant in Brevik. Achievement of this project will have major knock-on effects locally, nationally and internationally.
Per Brevik, Sustainability Director HeidelbergCement Northern Europe, Norcem’s holding company, is very pleased with this government proposal to support the construction of a carbon capture plant at Norcem in Brevik.
Historic day
"This is an historic day for the Brevik cement plant, which was founded more than 100 years ago. We've been working on the project ever since the first desktop outlines back in 2005," says Per Brevik. "During the last ten years, we've worked closely with the Norwegian policy implementation system and, not least, our good partners, and we're proud that we're now close to reaching our goal. We're now looking forward to a decision by the Storting (Parliament), followed by a challenging construction period for the actual plant, and, finally, being able to put the pilot plant for the cement industry into operation in spring 2024."
Contributing to the fulfilment of the Paris Agreement
Giv Brantenberg, General Manager HeidelbergCement Northern Europe and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Norcem, is very pleased with the Norwegian government’s decision.
"HeidelbergCement aims to play its part in fulfilling the terms of the Paris Agreement. Establishing the world’s first full-scale carbon capture plant in the cement industry will be a major step in this direction for both the Group and the industry as a whole. It will also inspire other process industries," says Giv Brantenberg.
400,000 tonnes of CO2 to be captured annually
It is estimated that the project will cost around NOK 3.3 billion. The plant will be able to capture 400,000 tonnes of CO2, equivalent to the emissions from around 200,000 fossil fuel-powered passenger cars annually. Carbon capture is the most mature and realistic solution in both the short and long term to reduce the cement industry’s carbon footprint, which represents 5-8 per cent of the world’s annual CO2 emissions.
"We're naturally aware of the industry’s total CO2 emissions, which makes it so vital for us to get started with this groundbreaking project. Cement is the main ingredient in concrete, the world’s most widely-used building material. Contributing to developing and building a sustainable society with a reduced climate impact from today's level is one of the major focus areas for the concrete industry. Within the Group, this is a 'landmark project', and as one of the world’s largest cement and concrete producers, we can drive this development onwards."
"The establishment of the 'Northern Lights' infrastructure system that Norway is now developing is a vital element of disseminating this technology," concludes Giv Brantenberg.