Road mapping crucial to de-carbonisation of India's cement sector

New Delhi, Dec 27 (IANS) Underscoring the need for definitive road mapping to de-carbonise India's cement sector -- one of largest emitters of greenhouse gasses, stakeholders, industry representatives, and experts on Monday called for policy, technical, as well as economic interventions to green the sector.

The sector, the building block of modern infrastructure, leaves behind a large carbon imprint. However, technological solutions which would allow for close to zero-emissions production of cement are within reach.

"Indian industry has made important progress in reducing energy emissions. But to attain long-term sustainable growth, more fundamental changes are required," The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) Director General, Dr Vibha Dhawan said at the workshop on 'Virtual Roadmap Workshop for Decarbonisation of Cement Sector in India'.

TERI is a local partner for the Leadership Group for Industry Transition (LeadIT), launched by Sweden and India at the UN Climate Action Summit in New York in 2019, and the two together are working towards preparing a sectoral roadmap for the cement and steel sector.

The workshop was jointly organised by the TERI, LeadIT Secretariat, and the Strategic Partnership for the Implementation of Paris Agreement (SPIPA) here, a release said.

In his special address, EU Ambassador to India, Ugo Astuto said: "It is imperative to implement the promises made in Glasgow as rapidly as possible. We welcome the engagement of the LeadIT on de-carbonising this important sector, in line with commitments taken at COP 26. Under the SPIPA project, the EU will work together with the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change to support the LeadIT initiative, through technical inputs and studies."

In her presentation, Head of Global Agendas, Climate & Systems Division, Dr Somya Joshi emphasised industry roadmap planners are crucial for knowledge sharing, adopting a structural approach to setting and achieving targets, as well as avoiding bottlenecks.

"Ambitious targets are often put in place, but it is important to plug the gap between rhetoric and reality," she said.

Cement industry representative, Dalmia Cement (Bharat) Ltd MD & CEO, Mahendra Singhi pointed out that carbon capture, its utilisation or storage, is crucial to make the Indian cement sector net-zero.

Dr Muthukrishnan M from the GMR group observed that from a business perspective, it is important to consider the economic feasibility of green cement, the release added.