As the European Commission recently presented its proposal to revise the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS), an important step towards reconciling climate ambition with industrial competitiveness, Cem’In’Eu welcomed Philippe Richart, CEO of the World Cement Association (WCA), to its Portes-lès-Valence site to discuss the challenges of decarbonising the cement industry and the levers available to achieve this goal.
“We were delighted to welcome Philippe Richart to our Portes-lès-Valence site. In addition to reaffirming our active role as a founding member of the WCA, this meeting provided Cem’In’Eu with an opportunity to demonstrate that solutions to reduce the carbon footprint of the industrial cement production sector already exist in the field and at the heart of our regions. We firmly believe that the decarbonisation of our sector must accelerate very rapidly in order to combat global warming. We already offer our customers easy-to-use products that comply with existing standards,” commented Fabien Charbonnel, President of Cem’In’Eu.
“It is a great pleasure to finally be able to visit Cem’In’Eu, one of our founding members, at their site near Lyon. Decarbonisation has been at the heart of their strategy since the creation of the company, and everything has been thought through from the outset to reduce their carbon impact. It was a great opportunity to review the initiatives launched by Cem’In’Eu in the past and discuss their future projects,” highlighted Philippe Richart, CEO of WCA.
The main levers of decarbonisation have been activated: operational and logistical excellence, energy efficiency, optimisation of the product portfolio towards low-carbon cements while maintaining premium quality. Calcined clays as well as SCMs and renewable energies were also discussed. A very good demonstration that decarbonisation is the way forward and that it makes complete economic sense. An example to be widely followed and shared with our other WCA members,” he continued.
During his visit, Mr Richart was able to discover a production site designed to minimise its environmental impact. The Rhône Ciments plant is notably connected to the rail network, enabling supplies to be transported from the port of Sète. Areas have also been preserved to protect the habitat of the Southern Blue butterfly (Azurée du serpolet), a protected species found within the plant’s site.
Mr Richart also discovered the production of low-carbon cements, which has been operational since 2023. To formulate its range of FUSIO low-carbon cements, Cem’In’Eu has replaced part of the clinker with natural, locally sourced pozzolans. As a result, Cem’In’Eu has reduced the carbon footprint of its products by 10 points since 2019 and offers these solutions for both bagged and bulk applications.
This range of low-carbon cements embodies Cem’In’Eu’s response to the requirements of sustainable construction, while also illustrating the WCA’s mission to guide the global cement industry towards reducing its carbon footprint in line with the Paris Agreement.
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