Zero carbon cement and concrete

This project aims to build the case for a genuinely ambitious decarbonisation pathway for cement and concrete. Emphasis is on national and EU policies and standards that can accelerate the transition and open up for clinker substitution, alternative binders and clean energy supply.

The project Standardization Work on Zero Carbon Cement & Concrete is coordinated by the Environmental Coalition on Standards (ECOS). It includes partners in several European countries, including IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute.

The cement and concrete industry is a significant source of CO2 emissions. Concrete accounts for a large share of the carbon footprint of many building and construction projects, and the production of cement clinker, in turn, accounts for the vast majority of climate impact of concrete. Previous studies suggest that there is a significant potential to reduce the climate impact of new concrete structures if applying a combination of measures upstream (in the primary production of cement) and downstream (e.g. reducing the amount of cement and concrete used for a specific function) in the concrete supply chain.

The project team will engage with key stakeholders seeking to influence national positions on EU policy files and to contribute to moving the positions forward on policies and standards with relevance for lowering the climate impact from cement and concrete with relevance and contributing to standardisation technical committees, including submission of technical comments.

Project structure

The role of green public procurement

The recording below is from a roundtable conversation on how to use procurement processes in the green transition. It includes presentations from IVL Swedish Enviornmental Research Institute, ECOS, IDDI (Undido), The Swedish Transport Administration, The Swedish National Agency for Public Procurement and WSP.