GO4ZERO by Holcim: status and timeline

GO4ZERO

Decarbonization of Obourg cement plant using oxyfuel kiln and Cryocap. Phase 1 (kiln) on track; Phase 2 (capture) paused.

PilotStage 3 of 5

Oxyfuel kiln under construction; 30% CO₂ reduction by 2027. Capture paused pending infrastructure.

Updated 27 Feb 2026Checked 10 Oct0 updates this week

Milestones

Next · New oxyfuel kiln construction

EU Innovation Fund grant awardedJul 2023Complete.
New oxyfuel kiln constructionTarget Q4 2026Current milestone.
Oxyfuel kiln operational, 30% CO₂ reduction from combustionTarget 2027Not yet reached.
Cryocap carbon capture installation (paused, pending infrastructure)Target Q4 2030Not yet reached.
Obourg plant reaches net-zero cement productionTarget Q4 2030Not yet reached.

Most important updates

Air Liquide and Holcim sign carbon capture agreement for Obourg; project timeline faces delay27 Feb 2026

Upcoming

Q4 2026New oxyfuel kiln construction (next)
2027Oxyfuel kiln operational, 30% CO₂ reduction from combustion
Q4 2030Cryocap carbon capture installation (paused, pending infrastructure)
Q4 2030Obourg plant reaches net-zero cement production

Current obstacles

Storage infrastructure under developmentPermanent offshore CO₂ storage in the North Sea is not yet operational at required scale.
Cost of large-scale oxygen productionCryogenic air separation to produce pure oxygen is energy-intensive and expensive.

Physics limits

Incomplete decarbonizationOxyfuel reduces only combustion CO₂ (30% of total). The remaining 70% comes from limestone decomposition (CaCO₃ → CaO + CO₂), requiring raw material switches to fully decarbonize.
Storage capacity limitedPermanent CO₂ storage is constrained by available reservoirs and pipeline capacity. Europe-wide decarbonization needs multiple storage locations.
Technology maturityLarge-scale oxyfuel cement kiln operation and the coupled Cryocap system have not yet been demonstrated at Obourg's scale.

How it works

3 parts

Air-oxyfuel kiln

Burn with oxygen, not air

Pure oxygen replaces air for production. Exhaust is mostly CO₂ and water, with no nitrogen dilution.

Cryocap OXY capture

Cool and compress to extract CO₂

Cryogenic distillation liquefies CO₂ from kiln exhaust. Removes water and impurities.

Transport and storage

Pipeline to permanent offshore storage

Liquid CO₂ ships from Antwerp@C hub to depleted North Sea gas fields for storage.

Spec sheet

Spec	GO4ZERO
Obourg plant capacity	1.7 million tonnes/year^R (reported)
Combustion CO₂ reduction	~30%^R (reported)
CO₂ capture target (when operational)	1.1 million tonnes/year^R (reported)
Total investment	EUR 500+ million^R (reported)
EU Innovation Fund grant	EUR 230 million^R (reported)

^R reported by the company

Update log

1 update

Fri 27 Feb

Major: Air Liquide and Holcim sign carbon capture agreement for Obourg; project timeline faces delayPressPartnership

About Holcim

The team behind GO4ZERO

Holcim

Cement, building materials, carbon capture, decarbonization

Swiss building-materials company formed in 2015 from the merger of Lafarge and Holcim (founded 1912). Operates cement and aggregates production globally and leads in sustainable construction materials.

Produces 217 million tonnes cement annually; scaling low-carbon production.
GO4ZERO: €500M air-oxyfuel kiln targets 30% CO₂ reduction; capture phase paused pending infrastructure.
Net-zero delayed to late 2030/early 2031 as storage infrastructure develops.

holcim.com (opens holcim.com)Company profile →

Founded: 1912114 yrs
Headquarters: Switzerland
Status: Public
Valuation: public
Staff: ~45,000Jan 2026
Works in: MaterialsClean cement
Coverage: 1 program · 1 updatelatest 27 Feb 2026checked 10 Oct
Partners: Air Liquide (opens airliquide.com)
Investors: European Commission, Innovation Fund (opens ec.europa.eu)
People: Miljan Gutovic (opens holcim.com)CEO

Spec

GO4ZERO

Obourg plant capacity

1.7 million tonnes/year^R (reported)

Combustion CO₂ reduction

~30%^R (reported)

CO₂ capture target (when operational)

1.1 million tonnes/year^R (reported)

Total investment

EUR 500+ million^R (reported)

EU Innovation Fund grant

EUR 230 million^R (reported)