CI4C inaugurates catch4climate Pure Oxyfuel R&D plant
- Partners invested more than €120 million in the catch4climate facility.
- A dedicated rotary kiln line was built with a clinker capacity of 450 metric tons per day.
- The plant is the world’s first R&D facility applying the Pure Oxyfuel process for CO₂ capture and was implemented without public funding.
- First clinker was produced end-May 2026 and the first oxygen supply occurred in mid-June 2026.
Project and partners
The research company CI4C GmbH & Co. KG, founded by Buzzi SpA/Dyckerhoff, Heidelberg Materials, SCHWENK Zement and Vicat in 2019, realised the catch4climate flagship project to jointly research CO₂ capture in cement production.
Facility and investment
More than €120 million funded a dedicated rotary kiln line at the Mergelstetten plant with a clinker production capacity of 450 metric tons per day. The facility is dedicated exclusively to research and was implemented without public funding; thyssenkrupp Polysius designed the Pure Oxyfuel process applied on site.
Operations and milestones
After seven years of planning and development the plant began operations. Key milestones before the inauguration included first clinker production at the end of May 2026 and the first supply of oxygen in mid-June 2026; the objectives of the first operating campaign were fully achieved.
Purpose and outlook
The Pure Oxyfuel process replaces air with pure oxygen to produce a highly concentrated CO₂ stream, simplifying capture for subsequent storage or industrial reuse. The project aims to develop the technical basis and knowledge to enable large-scale deployment of CO₂ capture technologies across the European cement industry and reduce unavoidable process-related CO₂ emissions.
Source: Heidelberg Materials