BAMBURI CEMENT PARENT COMPANY SIGNS NET ZERO PLEDGE WITH SCIENCE-BASED TARGETS

BAMBURI CEMENT PARENT COMPANY SIGNS NET ZERO PLEDGE WITH SCIENCE-BASED TARGETS

By Douglas Muriithi

” The partnership seeks to develop a roadmap

for aligning climate targets to a 1.5°C future in

the cement sector, pushing the boundaries of

Green construction” .

Bamburi cement parent company,

LafargeHolchim become the first global

building materials company to sign the

‘Business Ambition for 1.5°C’ pledge with

intermediate targets approved by the Science-

Based Targets initiative (SBTi) in alignment

with net zero pathway.

The commitment builds on LafargeHolcim’s

leadership in Green construction with its low-

carbon and carbon-neutral products such as

ECOPact, green concrete, and Susteno.

In its 2030 goals, LafargeHolcim has

committed to operate its first net zero CO2

cement production facility, lower its target for

CO2 intensity in cement to 475kg net CO2 per

ton of cementitious material (net CO2/t.cem.),

recycle 100m tons of waste and byproducts for

energy and raw materials, double waste-derived

fuels in production to reach 37% as well as

scale up the use of calcined clay and develop

novel cements with new binders. The company

has also committed to reduce its transportation

and fuel-related emissions by 20%.

Commenting on the partnership, Bamburi

Cement Managing Director Seddiq Hassani

noted that environmental protection is a key

pillar of sustainability at LafargeHolcim and its

subsidiaries, citing Bamburi’s own commitment

to substitute fossil fuels with industrial,

municipal waste and biomass to power its

cement plants.

Among these efforts Bamburi, through its

waste management division Geocycle, has

partnered with Petroleum Institute of East

Africa (PIEA) in the Safe Waste Oil Disposal

(SWOD) initiative; whereby major oil marketers

in Kenya, safely dispose the waste oil from their

service stations and their commercial

customers across the country, through

Bamburi’s cement kilns. Bamburi also partners

with tyre retreading companies, motor

assemblers and big hauliers for safe disposal

of waste tyres as well as with rice millers on

disposal of rice husks in a safe and

environmentally friendly manner.

“Signing of the Net Zero Pledge with Science-

Based Targets is a step in the right direction for

LafargeHolchim and by extension Bamburi

Cement as well as the society we live in.

Realization of the set goals in this partnership

will greatly contribute to environmental

conservation which is a key area of our

sustainability ambitions. Locally, we have been

taking initiatives through partnerships via

Geocycle that will help build up to the bigger

picture that is Net zero Pledge,” said Mr

Hassani.

Bamburi has over the years taken continuous

action at local community levels to protect and

conserve biodiversity in a bid to mitigate

climate change effects, the long standing

conservation initiatives such as Bamburi Haller

Park, demonstrate Bamburi’s sustainable

practices in quarry restoration and bio diversity

conservation.

Hassani noted that Bamburi is also paying

attention to low carbon cements and

environmental conservation, through product

innovation for example recently launched

Bamburi Duracem cement at 279 net Kg C02 /t,

is the greenest cement in the market.

LafargeHolchim CEO Jan Jenisch said: “I

believe in building a world that works for people

and the planet. That’s why we are reinventing

how the world builds today to make it greener

with low-carbon and circular solutions. I am

very excited to be working with SBTi, taking a

rigorous science-based approach to shape our

net zero roadmap and accelerating our efforts

to substantially lower our CO2 footprint. I will

not stop pushing the boundaries to lead the

way in green construction.”

Magali Anderson, LafargeHolchim Chief

Sustainability Officer said: “As the world’s

largest cement producer, we have a key role to

play in addressing today’s climate crisis. On our

way to becoming a net zero company, we are

not only part of the solution, we are committed

to supporting our customers in their CO2-

reduction ambitions. No company can tackle

today’s climate challenge alone, that’s why we

are partnering for impact.”

On his part, Alberto Carrillo, Director, Science

Based Targets at CDP, one of the Science Based

Targets initiative partners said: “We at SBTi are

delighted that LafargeHolcim has joined the

group of over 290 industry leaders committed

to a 1.5°C future. As the largest player in one of

the most carbon-intensive industries,

LafargeHolcim’s leadership demonstrates that

a net zero economy is within reach.”

On its net zero journey LafargeHolcim will

accelerate circular construction by increasing

the use of recycled materials in its products

and processes while recovering materials at the

end of their life cycle. In 2019 alone,

LafargeHolcim recycled 48 million tons of

waste making it a world leader in waste

solutions, contributing to cleaner cities while

preserving earth’s finite resources.

In the next ten years, LafargeHolchim is keen to

develop and deploy advanced technologies,

preparing the next step of its net zero journey.

This includes piloting over twenty Carbon

Capture Usage and Storage (CCUS) projects

across Europe and North America.