Consensus with the Directorate General for Industry of the Government of Catalonia on the sector’s needs and solutions to achieve decarbonization

On October 20, the Cement Manufacturers’ Association of Catalonia (Ciment Català), led by its president Salvador Fernández Capo, met with the Director General for Industry, Xavier Roca, to agree on the lines of action to advance decarbonization. These strategies are aligned with the carbon budgets presented by the Catalan Government as a tool to accelerate climate action, ensure just transitions, and strengthen the resilience of the various economic sectors. The meeting also addressed the cement plants’ capabilities for waste recovery, both material and energy-related, as well as for CO₂ capture, storage, and use. For these reasons, the challenge of climate neutrality is viewed as both a challenge and an opportunity for both parties.

The Ciment Català delegation informed Xavier Roca about the situation of the sector, affected by the sluggishness of the cement market due to the lack of construction—particularly public works—and infrastructure maintenance, especially those related to passenger mobility and freight transport. At the same time, they explained how the industry faces the challenge of achieving a zero-carbon footprint by 2050, an objective that will require an investment of more than 800 million euros by Catalan companies, and which demands collaboration from public authorities—both in financial support and in decision-making, as well as the agility needed to implement the projects that will lead to decarbonization.

For his part, the Director General for Industry noted that sustainability, energy efficiency, and circularity are strategic priorities shared by Catalonia’s economic fabric and the Government of Catalonia. In this regard, during the institutional meeting, solutions were analyzed such as allocating part of the revenue from CO₂-related taxation to decarbonization projects, developing networks for CO₂ transport and storage, and ensuring access to renewable energy at competitive prices.

The administration and the sector also assessed the implementation of new measures to promote the circular economy by minimizing the amount of waste sent to landfill or incineration and facilitating its recovery—both material and energy-related—at cement plants. Finally, the consensus on the strategies to be followed also included administrative simplification and streamlining of permit procedures, as well as environmental taxation aligned with these objectives.