Reduce clinker dependence – COCMAG Chairman

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• Clinker Cemento 21 hours ago

  Ghana does not have commercially suitable or sufficient limestone deposits for large-scale, traditional cement (clinker) production.
  
  While Ghana does have several major limestone deposits across the country, they suffer fr ...
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  Ghana does not have commercially suitable or sufficient limestone deposits for large-scale, traditional cement (clinker) production.
  
  While Ghana does have several major limestone deposits across the country, they suffer from two major flaws that prevent them from being used for traditional cement: high magnesium content (dolomitic limestone) and unfavorable logistics/scale. Because of this, Ghana's cement industry historically relies almost entirely on importing clinker—the limestone-based nodules that serve as the binder in traditional cement.
  
  Ghana actually has hundreds of millions of tonnes of limestone, but the chemical composition and locations present steep hurdles for cement manufacturers.
  
  Buipe (Northern Region) ~6 million tonnes limestone / 138 million tonnes dolomite Too much Magnesium: The vast majority of this reserve is high-magnesium dolomite. If magnesium oxide (MgO) in cement exceeds 5%, it causes the concrete to expand and crack over time.
  Nauli (Western Region) ~23 to 400+ million tonnes Depth and Cost: While chemical purity is better here, many of these beds are heavily interlayered with clay/shale or lie beneath deep overburdens, making large-scale commercial extraction and clinker processing economically unfeasible compared to imports.
  Oterkpolu / Yongwa (Eastern Region) ~3 to 10 million tonnes Too Small & Impure: These deposits are actively quarried, but they are primarily used as "filler" or for aggregate/masonry mortars. They contain too many impurities (silica and clay) for high-purity industrial clinker kilns.
  
  Because local limestone is unsuitable for traditional kilns, Ghana's 15+ cement grinding companies (like Ghacem and CBI Ghana) have traditionally imported clinker from countries like Egypt, Togo, and Europe, exposing the local economy to volatile shipping costs and foreign exchange risks.
  
  How Ghana Sidestepped the Problem: Ghana has actually become a global pioneer in an alternative green cement technology called LC3 (Limestone Calcined Clay Cement).
  Instead of trying to force poor-quality local limestone into traditional high-heat kilns, major manufacturers like CBI Ghana (in partnership with Heidelberg Materials) completed construction on the world’s largest flash clay calcination plant in Tema.
  • The Strategy: They use vast, highly abundant local clay deposits, heat them to around – to create "calcined clay," and blend it with a much smaller percentage of imported clinker and ground local limestone.
  • The Result: This breakthrough allows Ghana to reduce its clinker import dependency significantly, lower cement production costs, and slash the carbon footprint of its cement by up to 40%. Ghana now boasts the world's lowest authorized clinker content standard for cement (just 35%).
  In short, while Ghana lacks the right limestone to make traditional cement from scratch, it has successfully pivoted to using its massive clay reserves to manufacture high-quality, sustainable cement locally.
  
  Madam Minister, what do you have to say on this revelation to Ghanaians about cement production in your country?
  BTW, regarding port delays, there is ongoing dredging works at the Tema Port which will help reduce delays in the discharge of clinker for cement manufacturers in Ghana. How has LC3 good technology help to reduce cement prices in Ghana? It should have, right? Anything to say about that Mr. Fredric Albrecht?

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