Holcim’s Colorado Plant Goes Solar

Recently Holcim installed a complex of solar panels at its plant in Penrose, Colorado, making the Swiss company the first to use solar energy to power a cement plant in the United States.  The complex consists of 528 panels arranged in an area approximately 65% of an acre.  The panels are rated at 100.32 kilowatts and provide approximately 156,200 kilowatt-hours of energy.

With the energy provided by its new solar complex, the Holcim plant has safely removed the equivalent of 112 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions from the atmosphere.  Sadly, however, the panels only produce enough energy to power the administrative offices of the plant and not the manufacturing structures themselves.  There is speculation as to why Holcim, one of the world’s leading cement producers, did not place more solar panels at the site to generate energy in the megawatt range.

However, we cannot doubt Holcim’s motives for installing the panels.  It was not merely a blank gesture.  The Penrose plant, along with other plants nationwide, has also begun relying partially on alternative fuels for its manufacturing process.  Holcim burns approximately 4 million used tires per year as part of its alternative fuel program.  As further proof of its genuine concern for the environment, Holcim partnered with other leading cement producers to form the Cement Sustainability Initiative.  The Initiative, now consisting of 21 producers accounting for 40% of the market, focuses on six main areas for industry reform: climate protection, fuels and raw materials, employee and health safety, emissions reduction, local impacts, and internal business processes.  Also, in the past, Holcim has been awarded the EPA’s Energy Star Award for having superior energy efficiency at three of its plants.  President and CEO Patrick Dolberg said, “We have a strong commitment to protecting the environment and conserving natural resources throughout the company and this achievement reflects the relentless efforts by the management and employees at each plant.”  The Energy Star designated these plants as being in the top 25% of efficient cement plants in the country.

Because of its involvement in the Initiative, I believe the changes at the Penrose plant are only the first baby step in Holcim’s process for helping sustain long term, positive, environmental impact.  We now only have to wait for what Holcim unveils next.