Heidelberg Materials and Arup join forces to drive decarbonisation of the built environment
- Heidelberg Materials and global built environment consultancy Arup agree to collaborate under a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).
- The two companies will leverage the learnings from Heidelberg Materials’ pioneering carbon capture project in Brevik, Norway, and use these to focus on advancing decarbonisation of the built environment through the deployment of carbon capture and storage in cement production.
- Under the MoU, both partners will advance research and other activities related to carbon capture and storage-enabled decarbonisation of cement and concrete, materials that are critical to the built environment.
Heidelberg Materials and Arup, one of the world’s leading built environment consultancies, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding. Both partners will collaborate in the field of decarbonisation of the built environment by exploring deployment of carbon capture and storage (CCS)-enabled cement and concrete production and supply. CCS represents an essential route to decarbonisation for the production of cement and concrete. These critical materials are the source of significant volumes of CO₂ emissions and decarbonisation of their production and supply is urgently needed.
From next month, Heidelberg Materials' Brevik CCS facility in Norway will be the first CCS plant in operation at scale within the global cement industry. In combination with storage, this will enable the company to supply evoZero®, the world’s first carbon captured cement and concrete. This is an essential step in unlocking decarbonisation of the cement sector across Europe.
Under the MoU, both partners will engage in joint research cooperation and technical analysis of the opportunities to deploy CCS to decarbonise cement and concrete products. Since the application of CCS in cement production does not alter product properties, this is an opportunity to advance understanding of CCS’s potential future contribution to build environment decarbonisation.
“Decarbonising our industry is an urgent and monumental task and can only be achieved in close collaboration between the most important players. Our know-how and pioneering role in CCUS, combined with Arup's techno-economic and strategic expertise when it comes to reducing emissions in the global built environment create a perfect fit. We're excited to join forces and make a real difference together”, said Dr Katharina Beumelburg, Chief Sustainability and New Technologies Officer at Heidelberg Materials.
Dame Jo da Silva, Chief Sustainable Development Officer at Arup, said: “The global built environment is a significant contributor to climate change and action is needed now to decarbonise critical building materials production. Carbon capture and storage technologies will play an important role in reducing emissions from hard-to-abate industries, including cement and concrete. Heidelberg Materials’ first-mover investment in industrial-scale carbon capture at its Brevik facility in Norway is a notable step forward.”
The agreement builds on an earlier collaboration that began in November 2024, in which both partners explored the sustainable benefits, technical complexities, and value of carbon captured cements and concrete.
Caption: Signing the Memorandum of Understanding. Seated (left to right): Dame Jo da Silva (Chief Sustainable Development Officer, Arup), Dr Katharina Beumelburg (Chief Sustainability and New Technologies Officer Heidelberg Materials); standing behind (left to right): Jemima Bruin-Bland, Carbon Capture and Utilisation lead – UKIMEA, Arup), Mubarik Chowdhry (Vice President Global Key Account and Product Management evoZero, Heidelberg Materials)
- About Arup
- Arup is a global built environment consultancy with advisory and technical expertise across more than 150 disciplines. We create safe, resilient, and regenerative places, bringing a Total Design approach to our work for our clients.
- About Heidelberg Materials
- Heidelberg Materials is one of the world's largest integrated manufacturers of building materials and solutions with leading market positions in cement, aggregates, and ready-mixed concrete. We are represented in around 50 countries with around 51,000 employees at almost 3,000 locations. At the centre of our actions lies the responsibility for the environment. As the front runner on the path to carbon neutrality and circular economy in the building materials industry, we are working on sustainable building materials and solutions for the future. We enable new opportunities for our customers through digitalisation.
