Eagle Materials secures rights to three 240K-tpy Terra CO2 SCM plants

Sources: Eagle Materials Inc., Dallas; Terra CO2 Technology, Golden, Colo.; CP staff

Eagle Materials has entered an agreement granting exclusive right to build and operate three facilities processing up to 240,000 tons per year of Terra CO2’s supplementary cementitious material, Opus SCM, from common quarry byproducts or other silicate-rich feeds. The facilities would be earmarked for specific geographic areas. They include the Greater Denver Market, where concrete producers and contractors are preparing for next year’s implementation of the Buy Clean Colorado Act, which promotes low carbon construction material procurement on state projects exceeding $500,000. Consistent with the law’s objectives, Opus SCM can be used to replace portland cement at levels up to 40 percent in concrete mix designs.

Terra CO2 engineers commercial-scale Opus SCM production around raw feed storage and transfer devices; reactor, heat exchange and dust control equipment; plus, processed material grinding, storage and loadout.

Full realization of Terra CO2 agreement terms could see Eagle Materials add nearly 10 percent of concrete binder output to a portfolio spanning eight plants with annual portland and blended cement finishing capacity exceeding 8 million tons. “Entering these agreements with Terra, we’re taking bold steps today to seek solutions that reduce the carbon intensity of cementitious materials using new technologies,” says Eagle Materials CEO Michael Haack. “Furthermore, as the supply of other SCMs, such as fly ash, continues to decrease in availability, increased SCM development will be crucial to fulfill the needs of our customers and in meeting the expected increases in demand for cement more broadly.”

“We are working hard to accelerate deployment of commercial plants through strategic partnerships, deploying more capital and shortening timelines,” adds Terra CO2 CEO Bill Yearsley. “We are thrilled to work with a partner like Eagle Materials to build commercial plants for sustainable construction, and act on this urgency through our shared commitment to action. In the absence of a ‘climate tech express lane’ from the government, working with industry leaders is key to innovating and expediting low-carbon solutions for the industry.”

The Eagle Materials agreement follows September’s announcement involving Terra CO2 and Texas partner Asher Materials, the latter eyeing a Dallas-Fort Worth market site for 2024-2025 construction of the first commercial-scale Opus SCM production facility.