A delegation from Ciment Català, led by President Salvador Fernández Capo, held a working session with the Honourable Minister of Territory, Housing and Ecological Transition of the Generalitat, Sílvia Paneque, to address the industry’s challenges in securing mineral resources for cement production. Aggregates are the main and essential raw material for the sector: the four Catalan plants consume over 5 million tonnes of this quarry-sourced material each year. Ensuring its supply in the future is key not only for maintaining the industry but also—as Minister Paneque also noted— “for the development of the country.”
The meeting confirmed the degree of consensus between the parties on the strategic importance of mineral resources. In particular, the need to maintain the operation of the quarries located in the Garraf Massif was reaffirmed, as they supply 3 of the 4 cement plants in Catalonia.
The session also highlighted how the proper exploitation of aggregates—including the restoration of natural areas—ensures the country’s progress in terms of housing development and the construction of essential infrastructure for territorial development
The sector representatives informed the minister of the factories’ needs regarding limestone consumption in the coming years. The working session also addressed the challenges facing the sector, with particular emphasis on the decarbonisation process, which aims to achieve climate neutrality in the industry by 2050.
Minister Sílvia Paneque offered the representatives of Ciment Català the opportunity to open lines of collaboration, noting that the coexistence of industry and the natural environment is both possible and beneficial to society, provided that the sector’s environmental commitment is upheld—expressed through both the proper management of quarries and the protection of biodiversity within these areas.