Cement firm may sue over CO2 policy

A cement company which uses environmentally-friendly technology is threatening to sue the Government over its "anti-competitive" emissions trading policy.

Ecocem is the only Irish cement company not benefiting from the CO2 emissions trading scheme because it produces "virtually no" CO2 pollution, its managing director, Donal Ó Riain, told an Oireachtas environment committee yesterday.

Under the scheme the Government determines the level of CO2 emissions an industry can produce annually, and allocates it a corresponding amount of "carbon credits".

A company which produces more CO2 than its allocation must purchase additional credits from other industries in the EU.

However, companies producing less can sell their extra credits for profit. Credits are worth €23 each but are bought and sold in bulk lots of thousands.

The Irish cement industry receives 3.6 million credits annually, shared between three companies, Quinn Cement, Lagan Cement and Irish Cement. However, because of its low emissions, Ecocem is not included.

Ecocem achieves low emissions because it uses a by-product of the steel industry called blastfurnace slag to produce cement.

Other cement companies are using their carbon credits to buy up the slag, Mr Ó Riain said, but because, unlike Ecocem, they use it for only part of their cement production, they still benefit from the emissions scheme.

"It is very bizarre that an environmental company producing a 'green' product is being forced out of business by a scheme that is supposed to help reduce pollution," said Mr Ó Riain.