Alternative Fuels

Climate Action

Climate Action

Alternative Fuels

CEMEX has more than 20 years of experience in co-processing waste in our plants. Today, the most successful plants operate at alternative fuels substitution rates over 70%, with zero energy costs or sometimes even surpluses. Our installations with the highest alternative fuels rate include Chelm and Rudniki in Poland, and Prachovice in the Czech Republic.

In 2020 we co-processed almost 3 million tons of waste in 91% of our cement plants. CEMEX has actually become a “waste eater”, consuming 31 times more waste than we sent for disposal in 2020. The non-recyclable by-products that we utilized from other sectors amounted to more than 12 million tons for the year.

Alternative Fuels

Co-processing is a more efficient waste management solution than landfilling and incineration, this means that the cement industry is a net consumer of waste and it’s at the heart of the Circular Economy.

The use of Alternative Fuels is a key lever to reduce CO2 emissions from our combustion process and has the potential to make a real difference activating the waste management systems in the cities close to CEMEX plants across the globe. Co-processing leads to 4 key climate objectives:

  1. Reducing CO2 intensity of cement manufacturing.
  2. Reducing our dependence on fossil fuels.
  3. Decreasing the amount of landfilled waste.
  4. Minimizing public investment costs in new dedicated waste management facilities.

 

At CEMEX we will continue to invest in upgrading our cement plants to maximize the use of alternative fuels and we will continue to seek investment opportunities to find and transform new sources of waste to replace fossil fuels, wherever possible.