Five cement and lime plants in the Derbyshire Peak District and Staffordshire Moorlands have combined to form the Peak Cluster, aiming to cut annual carbon emissions by three million tonnes a year from 2030 – a quarter of annual output for the area.
They’re owned by Aggregate Industries, Breedon, Lhoist and Tarmac, together with the Lostock Sustainable Energy Plant in Cheshire.
Aggregate Industries’ cement plant in Cauldon, Staffordshire, which employs 125 people and produces up to a million tonnes of cement a year, is part of the project.
Being led by Progressive Energy, it aims to capture and transport carbon dioxide emissions from Cauldon and other partner plants before permanently locking it away beneath the East Irish Sea in one of the storage options which the project has access to – including Liverpool Bay CCS or the recently announced Morecambe Net Zero project.
Carbon dioxide emitted from the cement and concrete industry accounts for around a quarter of the total emissions in Derbyshire and Staffordshire, with 40% of all UK cement and lime manufactured in the Peak District and surrounding area.
Dragan Maksimovic, CEO for Aggregate Industries said: “The cement industry hugely contributes to the economy and supports jobs nationally and locally at our Cauldon plant. As a key player in the market, we recognise our responsibility to drive sustainable transformation.
“Peak Cluster will help us and our partners cut annual carbon emissions by a quarter in Staffordshire and Derbyshire. That is a game changer.
“A key driver for our whole business is greening our operations and helping to lead the way in decarbonising the industry. To become a net-zero business and to help the UK to reach its Net-Zero targets we must take positive action now.
“Last week we launched the Aggregate Industries Net Zero Strategy which outlines what we are doing today and will do in the years to come to zero our carbon emissions before 2050. Carbon capture, utilisation and storage is a vital component in that objective.”
Progressive Energy’s John Egan, Peak Cluster Project Director, said: “Peak Cluster will make a crucial contribution towards the UK’s drive to net zero, making a serious impact on local, regional and national climate change targets.
“The project will help industry to continue to thrive into the future – safeguarding jobs, maintaining a booming supply chain and allowing current and future generations to continue to work in, and enjoy, this beautiful region.”
The cement and lime sector is a key part of a combined mineral products industry, which contributes around £18bn to the UK’s GDP and directly employs 81,000 people, supporting a further 3.5m jobs.
