Further to this post I have had a little bit more time on my...

Further to this post I have had a little bit more time on my hands today than usual and was reviewing the topic of cement additive.

From the moment ADN announced its cementitious additive plans I thought there seemed to be real opportunity in the cement / carbon capture or reduction space and noting that concrete production is one of the major global sources of CO2.

I also recall previously some discussion in this forum regarding the major organisation, LaFarge Holcim, which is a "global leader in building solutions". Personally, in assessing ADN's prospects ongoing, I like to keep my finger on the pulse as to what other players in the space are doing.

On review it is interesting to note this article published on or about 4 March 2022 in "Quarry Magazine" regarding the success of Holcim's ECOPact low carbon concrete range in Australia:

Holcim ticks past one million ECOPact tonnes - Quarry (quarrymagazine.com)

With the following notable extracts from the article (my emphasis added):

"The group’s net sales increased 16 per cent year-on-year to $26 billion in 2021, with total cement sales growing 5.5 per cent to marginally surpass the 200 million tonne mark.

Sales of aggregates grew 5.3 per cent to 269.9 million tonnes, while sales of ready-mix concrete grew 10 per cent to 46.5 million cubic metres....

... Of the ready-mix concrete sales, more than one million tonnes were Holcim’s proprietary ECOPact concrete.

The low carbon concrete range was released to Australia in April 2021 as the 14th country to benefit from Holcim’s latest in recycled construction materials. By 2025, Holcim aims to have ECOPact making up 25 per cent of its ready-mix concrete range.

This kind of sustainably focussed thinking also allowed the company to reach its sustainable goals well ahead of schedule, according to Jenisch. “We delivered our Strategy 2022 one year in advance, setting solid foundations for our net era of growth,” he said.

“Putting sustainability at the core of our strategy, we accelerated the deployment of our green building solutions, from ECOPact green concrete and ECOPlanet green cement to smart roofing and energy efficient systems."Exploring a bit further, you can find a link to Holcim's page regarding ECOPact here:

ECOPact – Low carbon concrete | Holcim Australia - Holcim Australia Pty Ltd

According to this Holcim's ECOPact: "... is a low carbon concrete that reduces embodied carbon by 30-60%. Combining the very best qualities of conventional concrete, ECOPact is available in a variety of strength classes and applications."

The ECOPact fact sheet is located here (and with some extracts that follow):

ecopact.pdf (holcim.com.au)






Holcim describes ECOPact as a "proprietary" mix and I have not been able to ascertain the product constituents / ingredients at this stage. Presumably this means it is patented, however, for some reason I could not get on to IP Australia's patent database to search for this today. Similar to ADN's cementitious additive it does appear that it involves "Reuse of by-products".

Anyway, I have collated the above out of personal interest but also to emphasise the significance of apparent commercial opportunity in Australia alone (not to mention globally) with respect to green cement additive. In my view and having regard to the example set out above, it is reasonable again to draw an inference that ADN could be the beneficiary of major commercial opportunity if it can gain a foothold in this space with a competitive product that both: (a) meets the stringent performance requirements of industry; and (b) has genuine carbon reduction or "green" attributes / qualities.

This is personal commentary and research, and is not intended as investment or other advice. Very best to all ADN shareholders.