Punjab’s Cement Industry: Can Carbon Capture Cut Emissions?

When people imagine air pollution and climate change in Punjab, smog, traffic, and crop burning commonly come to mind. Cement plants are rarely associated with Punjab. But the tall preheater towers across the Salt Range, from Chakwal to Mianwali, are landmarks of cement plants that emit CO₂ in Pakistan. A 2021 study by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) showed that emissions from the cement industry accounted for one-third of the increase in Pakistan’s CO₂ emissions over the previous decade.

Cement is essential to Punjab’s houses, roads and dams. So how can we manufacture without any emissions? Carbon capture is often the main technological discussion point in chemical engineering. Can this be applied to Punjab, and what needs to be done first?

How cement emits carbon

The key component of cement is clinker. Clinker is produced by heating limestone and clay at high temperatures in a kiln at around 1,450 °C. Within the kiln, limestone decomposes.

Calcination:

CaCO₃ → CaO + CO₂

This process emits CO₂ from the rock and not the fuel. A cement plant emits around 60% of its total CO₂ emissions through calcination reactions, with the remainder coming from fuel combustion. Therefore, changing fuels can only help a small portion of the problem. Carbon capture is a part of decarbonizing cement globally.

Why Punjab should care

Punjab is the centre of Pakistan’s cement industry. A study in 2023 found that Punjab had more active cement plants (12) than any other province. Nationally, installed capacity reached 84.58 million tonnes in 2026. The way cement is manufactured in Punjab makes the problem worse. Local plants emit an average of 0.79 tonnes of CO₂ per tonne of product compared to an average of 0.6. Cement within Pakistan has around 95% clinker and an average of 72%. Most kilns run on fuel oil. All bags of cement carry the burden of calcination and fuel emissions.

Can carbon capture be applied?

The main technology used for capturing CO₂ is post-combustion capture, using amine solvents. Exhaust gases from the kiln are passed through an absorber column where solvents such as monoethanolamine (MEA) chemically bind to CO₂. The solvent is then heated in a stripper column to release a concentrated stream of CO₂ which can be compressed and stored. In a pre-feasibility study for a cement plant, the exhaust gases contained around 13% CO₂. Engineers designed an amine unit to capture 90% of this. Post-combustion carbon capture has been shown to work at scale. In June 2025, Norway’s Brevik plant became the world’s first cement plant to have industrial-scale carbon capture. It can capture 400,000 tonnes of CO₂ a year, which equates to around half of its emissions. The CO₂ is liquefied and transported for storage beneath the North Sea. Clearly, this technology works, but it requires good public support and a solid transport and storage system. There are three main issues for Punjab. Firstly, energy. Regenerating MEA requires 3.5 GJ per tonne of CO₂ captured. Kilns in Pakistan currently use around 3.9 GJ per tonne of clinker. Full capture could lead to an increase in heat demand almost as large as that of the kiln itself. Secondly, water. Carbon capture units require cooling. The Salt Range has seen how costly water can be within industry. After the Katas Raj temple pond dried up, the Supreme Court banned cement factories from taking groundwater. In 2024, the Punjab government set up a committee to evaluate cement projects to save water. Finally, cost and storage. Costings vary depending on the size of the plant. Large Asian plants can cost around 59 euros per tonne of CO₂ avoided. European plants cost more at 107 euros. Whilst Pakistan may have 1.6 billion tonnes of storage capacity in depleted gas fields and saline aquifers in the Potwar Basin near the northern cluster of cement plants, there are no CO₂ pipelines or regulations in place.

How to build a low-carbon cement industry in Punjab

I don’t think carbon capture should be the first step for Punjab, but there are many low-cost measures that can be implemented now to make carbon capture easier in the future. Reduce clinker content. Fauji Cement reports that blended cement products with less clinker avoided emissions of around 89,875 tonnes of CO₂ in 2021-22. Limestone calcined clay cement (LC3) is a good option. Pakistan has plenty of kaolin clay reserves near existing cement plants. Increase waste heat recovery. Waste heat from kiln emissions can be converted into electricity now and used for heating in the future. Replace some of the coal used in kilns with biomass. Punjab produces large amounts of rice husks and crop residues. New plants should also be built with carbon capture in mind. Post-combustion units can be fitted, but there must be enough space. The Environment Protection & Climate Change Department could require kiln lines to leave space for future carbon capture units and assess their water requirements through Environmental Impact Assessments. Carbon markets could help cover the costs. In 2024, the federal cabinet approved guidelines for carbon market trading. The government has also identified cement as an industry that can generate carbon credits under  Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.

Conclusion

Carbon capture is an important solution for reducing unavoidable CO₂ emissions from limestone calcination. Carbon capture is not yet ready for deployment at scale in Punjab, but measures can be taken to prepare for its future adoption. Reduce clinker, recover heat, change fuels, and build new plants with carbon capture in mind.