Circulary

The EU cement industry supports the promotion of industrial symbiosis and the recognition of energy recovery as a waste management solution for non-recyclable waste. The use of waste materials in the cement industry as raw material or as a source of energy, or both, to replace natural mineral resources and fossil fuels such as coal, petroleum and gas, referred to as co-processing, contributes towards achieving the objectives of the circular economy. Cement manufacturing involves kiln temperatures of 1,500°C to 1,800°C. The characteristics of the process within the kiln ensure a complete destruction of organic compounds and incorporation of inorganic materials such as heavy metal traces into the structure of the product. Furthermore no by-products, such as ash of liquid residues, are produced.

The waste management domain is the second most important contributor to employment growth in the environmental economy. Co-processing requires a developed waste pre-treatment industry, which can ensure reliable and consistent waste streams to the cement industry. It is essential that the cement and pre-treatment industries work closely together to secure consistency of delivered waste. Co-processing of waste in cement kilns provides the following in terms of added value:

• Abatement of climate change – alternative fuels form one of the main levers for reduction of CO₂ intensity in cement manufacturing. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), alternative fuels can contribute 0.75 Gt of CO₂ reductions worldwide up to 2050.
• Currently, there are considerable differences in co-processing rate across the Member States, with some countries achieving a co-processing rate of only 7%, compared to 95% in others. The EU average is currently 41%. Increasing the rate of co-processing waste in the EU28 to 60% will:
  • Avoid 26.0 Mtonnes of CO₂ emissions.
  • Process 15.7 Mtonnes of waste.
  • Save 11.1 Mtonnes of coal equivalent.
  • Avoid 12.2 EUR billion public investment in dedicated Waste-to-Energy (WtE) plants.

The sector is technically ready to increase its use of alternative fuels. However barriers which can hinder co-processing in the cement industry include:

• Low landfill taxes along with availability of landfill capacities do not stimulate utilization of more advanced waste treatment methods, like co-processing.
• The availability of waste of sufficiency quality for the cement industry is one of the main barriers. In many countries, a substantial business incentive for the waste processing industry produce high quality waste is lacking.
• Permitting issues severely slow down the development of co-processing in some countries.
• Public acceptance of waste combustion is often low. This attitude does not seem to relate to the waste management strategy of these countries.
• There are differences across Member States in terms of political treatment of co-processing.
• Market distortions such as inclusion/non-inclusion of carbon price for different energy recovery options and biomass subsidies in power generation add to divert waste to other thermal treatment methods.

Nikos Nikolakakos

+32-2-234.10.22

n.nikolakakos@cembureau.eu