Technology Roadmap Low-Carbon Transition in the Cement Industry

part of the carbon emissions reductions strategies 
that enable the roadmap vision. The use of carbon 
capture has a penalty on energy consumption, 
which increases the cement electricity intensity by 
19% by 2050 globally compared to the electricity 
intensity achieved without considering carbon 
capture and other carbon mitigation levers.
The roadmap vision realises 7.7 GtCO
2
cumulative 
carbon emissions reductions by 2050 compared to 
the RTS by combining energy efficiency, switching 
to alternative fuels, reducing the clinker to cement 
ratio and integrating innovative technologies 

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22
Technology Roadmap
Low-Carbon Transition in the Cement Industry
including carbon capture. Current trends and 
announced commitments integrated in the RTS have 
already put the thermal energy intensity of clinker at 
a 0.2%
15
annual reduction trend, leading to a global 
average of 3.16 GJ/t clinker
16
by 2050. This is just 2% 
above the level achieved in the roadmap vision in 
the same year. 
The impact of improving the electrical energy 
efficiency of cement production is offset by the 
increased electricity demand arising from the use 
of carbon capture and other carbon emissions 
mitigation levers. However, as the vision of this 
15. Reduction rate reported as CAGR.
16. The thermal intensity of clinker does not include increases 
related to carbon mitigation levers beyond improving energy 
efficiency.
roadmap sees global electricity CO
2
intensity 
dropping 93% by 2050 (reaching 41 grammes of 
CO
2
per kilowatt hour (kWh) final electricity), these 
two counter-effects lead to negligible cumulative 
CO
2
savings in the sector. 
The integration of carbon capture in cement 
production (CO
2
emissions reduction of 48%) and 
the reduction of the clinker to cement ratio in 
cement (CO
2
emissions reduction 37%) lead the 
way in cumulative CO
2
emissions reductions in the 
roadmap vision compared to the RTS by 2050. Their 
contributions are jointly equivalent to almost 80% 
of current global direct CO
2
emissions from the total 
industrial sector (Figure 7).