Holcim offers climate-neutral cement in Germany
A CO2-reduced product portfolio is a key component of Holcim’s sustainability strategy. Following the launch of the sustainable ECOPact concretes in early 2020, Holcim is now placing CO2-reduced cements on the building materials market with the ECOPlanet product series, which, thanks to their optimized composition, cause significantly lower CO2 emissions than conventional cements. Holcim is also one of the first cement producers in Germany to offer the bagged cement ECOPlanet Zero (CEM III A/42.5 N), a CO2-neutral product suitable for all standard applications.
The complete compensation of the remaining CO2 emissions of the bagged cement ECOPlanet Zero, which are still technically unavoidable today, is achieved through the purchase of MoorFutures certificates. MoorFutures promotes rewetting projects of peatlands in various German states – a timely and effective instrument for CO2 offsetting, because peatlands are the largest and most effective carbon reservoirs on earth.
In addition to the bagged cement ECOPlanet Zero for professionals and do-it-yourselfers, Holcim offers three other CO2-optimized cement types as silo goods for ready-mix concrete plants and precast manufacturers. The calculation of the CO2 content of the ECOPlanet cements is based on life cycle assessments in accordance with DIN EN 15804 and considers the production steps from extraction of the raw materials to the finished product (cradle to gate).
Taking the next step as a pioneer with ECOPlanet
“By using high-quality granulated blast furnace slag, Holcim has been reducing the specific CO2 emissions of its binders very effectively for decades. As a result, these are already significantly better than the industry average. As a pioneer in the industry, it was now time to take the next step in cements towards climate-neutral construction with the ECOPlanet series,” explains Matthias von der Brelje, Director Sales Cement & Binders, Holcim (Deutschland) GmbH.
He adds: “In the future, we want to work with planners, tendering authorities and users to promote the use of our CO2-reduced binders even further. This will help our customers to realize their vision of sustainable construction even better. In terms of product technology, the ECOPlanet series also exhibits excellent – and in some cases even better – properties than Portland cements: for example, the good workability, light color, favorable heat development and high fatigue strength of concretes produced with cements containing blast furnace slag.”
