15 April 2026 – Ecocem, Europe’s leading provider of low-carbon cement technologies, headquartered in Dublin, welcomed the EU Commissioner for Climate, Net Zero and Clean Growth – Wopke Hoekstra to its flagship production facility in Dunkirk, France.
As the EU advances initiatives to tackle carbon-intensive industry across the continent – such as the recently-proposed Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA) – Commissioner Hoekstra’s visit underscores the key role of cement decarbonisation in strengthening Europe’s industrial competitiveness and climate leadership.
The Dunkirk plant – which is one of Ecocem’s four European facilities- is undergoing a significant expansion, with the addition of a €50 million plant dedicated to the production of ACT, Ecocem’s breakthrough low-carbon cement technology. ACT was developed with the single-minded goal of decarbonising the sector, due to its ability to scale globally and achieve CO₂ reductions of up to 70% compared to conventional European cement.
When fully operational at the end of 2026, the site will have a production capacity of 300,000 tonnes of ACT cement annually, delivering deep emissions reductions cost competitively and without compromising on performance. This new capacity is on top of the 700,000 tonnes of low carbon products already produced at the site annually.
As Ireland enters a major period of construction, with new homes and critical infrastructure requiring significant volumes of concrete, decarbonising cement cost-effectively will be central to reducing the climate impact of the construction sector.
Ireland has already demonstrated leadership in supporting and building lead markets for low-carbon cement through public procurement requirements mandating a minimum 30% reduction in clinker content.
With Ireland’s upcoming Presidency of the Council of the European Union, there is a timely opportunity to advance policy frameworks that support both decarbonisation and industrial competitiveness at EU and national level.
While the Critical Infrastructure Bill introduces faster planning pathways for major projects, ensuring low-carbon construction materials are embedded within infrastructure delivery must be core to infrastructural developments in Ireland.
Commenting on the visit, Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra said:
“Following on from the Cement Dialogue earlier this month, it is important to get out of our offices in the Berlaymont and see real industrial decarbonisation on the ground. Here in Dunkirk, Ecocem is building a first-of-a-kind plant for its low-carbon ACT technology, demonstrating what is already possible today.
“This visit highlights the progress being made towards decarbonising one of Europe’s most emissions-intensive sectors. It also underlines the clear opportunity for the EU to take a leading position in the decarbonisation of the global cement sector, delivering our climate objectives and strengthening industrial competitiveness and achieving more independence.
“What I have seen here at Ecocem is exactly the type of solution Europe should be supporting as we accelerate industrial decarbonisation.”
Donal O’Riain, Founder and CEO of Ecocem, said: “We welcome the opportunity to demonstrate to Commissioner Hoekstra and the wider EU policy community that scalable, cost-effective cement decarbonisation is no longer a future ambition, it’s possible right now.
“To unlock this potential at scale, Europe must get behind cleantech innovations such as ACT, by creating lead markets for low-carbon cement solutions and ensuring scale-up funding for these technologies. This will enable the maximum possible impact this decade.”
The Dunkirk production plant forms part of Ecocem’s broader €220 million investment programme to significantly expand the company’s low-carbon cement production facilities in Europe by 2030.
About Ecocem
Ecocem is an Irish headquartered cleantech company and a leading supplier of low carbon cement to the European concrete industry. Founded by Donal O’Riain more than 25 years ago, Ecocem supplies low carbon cement across Europe and has operations in Ireland, France, the UK and the Netherlands, producing over two million tonnes of low-carbon cement each year.
Ecocem’s low-carbon cement technology, ACT, can reduce the global carbon footprint of traditional cement production by more than half.
Ecocem’s technology has supported major infrastructure projects including Le Grand Paris Express, Dublin’s Aviva Stadium, the Paris 2024 Athletes’ Village, the UK’s HS2 and the Convention Centre in Dublin. To date, it has helped avoid 18 million tonnes of CO₂ emissions, equivalent to the annual absorption of over 800 million trees.
Investors include Saint-Gobain Group, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, and ArcelorMittal.
An independent company with a world-class innovation centre, Ecocem technology and services can help the cement sector cut emissions by 50% by 2030 and build a more sustainable future.
The consortium of Cairn, UCD, Kilsaran, and Ecocem has secured €50,000 in funding from Construct Innovate, Ireland’s national Construction Technology Centre, to validate an innovative low-carbon cement capable of significantly cutting Ireland’s CO2 emissions from the construction sector.
Following ASTM C1157 certification, screening life cycle assessment validates Ecocem’s pathway to delivering high-performance, low-carbon cement at scale in the U.S. market.
