Poland is currently the fourth largest emitter of carbon dioxide in the European Union, accounting for approximately 10.5% of total greenhouse gas emissions. This is due to the fact that the national economy is largely based on energy-intensive industries. At the same time, these industries employ at least 400,000 people and generate a proportionally higher added value than the EU average, without taking into account the costs of raw material consumption.
Consequently, investments in CCS/U technologies are crucial to achieving ambitious emission reduction targets and maintaining competitiveness. The European Union has recently accelerated its efforts to harmonise CCS/U regulations in order to help achieve the announced target of 50 million tonnes of annual CO2 capture capacity by 2030. CCS technologies are seen as an opportunity to build a new branch of the economy that will contribute to employment and revenue growth.
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To support the development of the CCS/U ecosystem in Poland, the Ministry of Climate and Environment and the World Bank organised a workshop with stakeholders on 27 May 2025. The aim of the meeting was to identify opportunities and barriers to the development of the new industry, define the necessary milestones and harmonise knowledge on the requirements necessary for the creation of a CCS/U ecosystem in Poland.
Holcim, as a pioneer in the implementation of modern technologies, took part in the discussion and presented a full-scale CCS project - Kujawy Go4ECOPlanet.
‘Industry in Poland is facing the challenge of decarbonising its value chains while taking into account the current market conditions, such as high energy costs and an insufficient choice of support instruments for companies investing in decarbonisation,’ says Radosław Gnutek, CCS Director at Holcim Poland. He adds: "Decarbonisation is at the heart of Holcim's business strategy. The CCS project at the Kujawy Cement Plant is of key importance to the company, as it will help it to continue operating under increasingly stringent emission reduction requirements, as well as helping other companies that are modernising their industrial processes and want to minimise their environmental impact. Go4ECOPlanet is a practical and effective example of supporting the security of the energy sector and the competitiveness of industry. The project uses new technologies based on European solutions that can be replicated in other branches of the economy. This will reduce the costs of subsequent implementations and accelerate their entry into the commercial phase.’
The workshop was attended by representatives of the government, international and local organisations, companies representing emitting industries, CCS operators, investors and financial institutions. The event was a platform for in-depth dialogue, exchange of experiences and building synergies between the public and private sectors.
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The carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology provides new development opportunities for heavy industry, which, due to the nature of its production processes, is unable to completely eliminate CO₂ emissions. The implementation of CCS is a real opportunity for the Polish industry to remain competitive amid climate change. Radosław Gnutek, CCS Project Director at Holcim Poland, talks about the first facility of this type in Poland, which could enable the production of nearly zero-emission cement.
Holcim Polska, a leader in sustainable building solutions, has selected the consultancy firm Hill International as its strategic engineering partner for the carbon capture and storage (CCS) project at the Kujawy Cement Plant. This flagship project is part of Holcim’s decarbonisation strategy and ranks among the most ambitious initiatives in the Polish cement industry.
Inearly April this year, experts from Holcim Poland participated in a series ofevents dedicated to CO2 capture and storage technologies, which are becoming ahot topic in energy-intensive industries. The events included the 2nd CarbonCapture Congress in Poznań. Radosław Gnutek, Carbon Capture and StorageProject Director, took part in the expert debate Leaders’ Forum I – TheFuture of CCUS in Poland, where he shared his insights on theimplementation of Go4ECOPlanet and practical tips on solutions that will enablea large-scale rollout of this technology.
Polish industry generates approximately 22% of the country's GDP and is responsible for 25% of all domestic CO2 emissions. The rising prices of fossil fuel energy and the carbon footprint costs are forcing an urgent modernisation of industry. CCS/U technologies are coming to the rescue, enabling the elimination of process emissions in energy-intensive industries. How to overcome regulatory and financial barriers by entering into partnerships and searching for new ways of using these technologies was the topic of discussion during the Ministerial Session in Poznań on 9 April 2025 as part of Net Zero Energy, a conference and exhibition event dedicated to energy transition.
CCS is an opportunity to increase the competitiveness of the cement industry in Poland in the light of the phase-out of the free emission rights under the ETS system, and Poland is currently the third largest cement producer in Europe. That is why Holcim (formerly Lafarge) has undertaken a unique global project to create an infrastructure capable of capturing 1 million tonnes of carbon dioxide per year from the kiln flue gases during clinker production.
Holcim is currently implementing a unique project on a global scale – a zero-emission cement plant. Using CCS technology, the cement plant in Kujawy will soon capture 100% of carbon dioxide emissions. Maciej Sypek, President of Holcim Polska, talks about the investment worth over 300 million euros in an interview for ESG Trends.
During a meeting with stakeholders from the Świętokrzyskie and Kujawsko-Pomorskie Voivodships that was held on 12 September, Holcim Polska summarised its environmental activities and investment projects. The Environment Day was also attended by a representative of the Marshal's Office in Kielce from the Department of Agriculture, Climate and the Environment, who touched on the development of circular economy in the region.
‘We are focusing on reducing our carbon dioxide emissions. As a result, over the past 20 years we have halved our CO2 emissions from 800 kg to 400 kg per tonne of cement. In addition, we will have implemented a modern carbon capture technology by 2030,’ said President of Holcim Polska Maciej Sypek, PhD, during the 33rd Economic Forum in Karpacz, Poland (3-5 September 2024).
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