GCCA is proud to be present at the forthcoming COP31, the UN Climate Change Conference in Antalya, Türkiye. You will be able to find us at our ‘Concrete Future’ Pavilion (D210) in the Blue Zone.
Türkiye has one of the world’s largest cement industries, ranking as Europe’s largest cement producer and the fifth largest globally. The sector is also increasingly focused on the transition to lower-carbon production, supported by a national technology roadmap and investment in energy efficiency, alternative materials and new decarbonisation technologies.
Throughout COP31, the GCCA’s Concrete Future Pavilion will host events discussing how to accelerate the deployment of low-carbon technologies, how low-carbon concrete can strengthen urban resilience, advance zero-waste and circularity goals through material reuse, and how to expand the industry’s use of renewable energy. We will also discuss how to create effective financing and regulatory mechanisms to support our industry transition. The programme is designed to connect stakeholders from across the value chain and turn ambition into action.
To fully unlock our industry’s decarbonisation efforts in this crucial decade to deliver, we urgently need effective policy support across a range of levers. Now is the time for a true collaboration with industry, governments, authorities and policymakers to join us in our shared mission.
See our events schedule below. Please note that these events are subject to change. Check back for the most up to date schedule.
Our Lead Partners
Our Partners
Events Schedule
Times are in Türkiye time
Tuesday 10 November
SCALING HYDROGEN AND POWER-TO-X From industrial innovation to green value chains 10:00 – 11:00
This event will discuss the potential role of hydrogen and hydrogen-derived fuels in reducing emissions from hard-to-abate industries, with a particular focus on the practical challenges of moving from demonstration projects to industrial-scale deployment.
Powering Cement’s Net Zero Future: Scaling Renewable Energy for Industrial Decarbonization 14:00 – 15:00
Achieving net-zero cement and concrete requires a fundamental transformation of industrial energy systems. While alternative fuels, clinker reduction and carbon capture remain essential pathways, access to affordable and reliable renewable electricity is increasingly important for cement producers worldwide.
The sector is accelerating renewable energy deployment through:
On-site renewable generation
Utility-scale solar and wind projects
Corporate Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs)
Energy storage solutions
Digital energy management systems
Electrification of production processes
Closer collaboration among industry, policymakers, energy providers and financial institutions is needed to unlock investment, improve enabling infrastructure and scale deployment.
Speakers:
Faidon Prokopios, Deputy CEO, TITAN Tracim
Canan Derinöz Gencel, Director of Environment and Climate Change Department, Turkcimento
Every year the world generates over 11 billion tonnes of waste. Managing this growing waste stream is one of our biggest global challenges.
Co-processing in the cement industry is a solution that transforms ‘non-recyclable’ waste into purpose. Instead of being sent to landfill sites, or dumped in streets, rivers and oceans – the waste can be collected and managed. In cement kilns, non-recyclable waste can replace fossil fuels as a source of energy, while its mineral content can be recovered and used as a raw material in cement production. This turns waste that would otherwise have little value into a useful resource.
Despite its potential, greater use of co-processing is being held back by regulatory barriers, insufficient policy incentives, and gaps in waste collection, sorting and pre-processing infrastructure.
In this session, we will examine global best practices for scaling up co-processing, while exploring the cross-regional challenges to scale up co-processing.
Moderator: Jana Psarska / Head of Policy Engagement and Advocacy
Speakers:
Kevin Lunney / Operations Director, Çimsa | Mannok
Soumya Chaturvedula / Director, ICLEI South Asia
Canan Derinöz Gencel / Environment and Climate Change Director, Turkish Cement Manufacturers’ Association (TÜRKÇİMENTO)
Galip Tekiner / Chairman, TAYÇED
CCUS in Practice: The 15-Year Journey from Idea to Infrastructure 17:00 – 18:00
What does it actually take to get a cement CCUS project from boardroom concept to a bag of cement that someone is willing to buy? A CCUS project is not complete when the capture unit starts operating. It is complete when someone chooses to buy the low-carbon cement it produces. Aim is to shift the discussion from advocating for technology and policy deployment to implementation across the entire project lifecycle and market transformation. The session with highlight that capture technology is only one link in a much larger value chain involving governments, financiers, infrastructure providers, builders and procurement authorities.
Hosted by Heidelberg Materials
Thursday 12 November
Low Carbon, High Resilience: Can Concrete Deliver Both? 10:00 – 11:00
Construction plays an important part in net-zero transition. Tomorrow’s climate-resilient cities, coastal defences, clean power networks and digital infrastructure will all rely on concrete. That’s why low-carbon cement and concrete must sit at the heart of this transition.
This session will explore:
How low-carbon cement and concrete can help deliver climate-resilient cities and infrastructure capable of withstanding increasingly frequent and severe climate impacts while supporting global decarbonisation goals. It will position concrete not simply as a construction material, but as a resilient solution that provides durability, long service life, flood resistance, thermal performance and the ability to maintain critical services and infrastructure under changing climate conditions.
How resilience and decarbonisation can be advanced together through the design and construction of buildings and infrastructure using low-carbon cement and concrete solutions.
How these principles can be reflected in national climate policies, including Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs).
While climate mitigation strategies have traditionally focused on reducing emissions, there is a growing need for climate plans to also address the resilience and performance of the infrastructure being built today. NDCs and NAPs can support this by promoting resilient and low-carbon infrastructure, incorporating resilience criteria into public procurement, strengthening building codes and infrastructure standards, encouraging whole-life carbon assessments, and recognising the role of durable materials in reducing long-term climate and economic risks. Aligned with COP31's Climate-Resilient Cities, Resilient Infrastructure and Standards, and Climate Implementation Bridge agendas, the session will highlight the need for governments to integrate resilience and decarbonisation objectives within planning, financing and infrastructure delivery frameworks.
Moderator: Diana Casey / Cement and ESG Director, GCCA
Speakers:
Berrak Erbuğa Avcıoğlu, R&D and Quality Director, Çimsa
Ariana Karamallis / Director of Global Engagement at Build Change
Anil Sawhney / Head of Sustainability, Data and Technology, RICS
Prof. Dr. Zeynep Başaran, Chair of the Department of Civil Engineering, Özyeğin University
Public Policy: Paving the Way for Low-Carbon Cement 11:30 – 12:30
The panel will explore the transition towards low-carbon cement and concrete, with particular emphasis on the role of public policies in accelerating this transformation. Discussions will highlight the contribution of clinker substitution, supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs), blended cements, circular economy practices and innovative technologies to reducing carbon emissions. Furthermore, Türkiye's Green Cement Communiqué, which promotes the use of low-carbon cement, will be presented as a concrete example of market transformation driven by public policy. The discussion will also address practical experiences, implementation challenges and potential solutions for advancing a sustainable, climate-resilient built environment.
Speakers
Mr. Atila Erenler – Deputy Director of the General Directorate of Vocational Services, Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change of Türkiye (Moderator)
This panel will bring together perspectives from academia, industry and the public sector to explore how 3D concrete printing can shape the future of construction in Türkiye. It will highlight the technology’s transformative potential in enhancing construction efficiency, flexibility, optimising material use and advancing sustainable building practices. The discussion will also address key challenges surrounding structural safety, industrial scalability and regulatory frameworks. The panel will emphasise the importance of cross-sector collaboration, innovation and regulatory progress in translating technological advances into safe, reliable and scalable construction solutions.
Speakers:
Prof. Dr. Mustafa Academian, Şahmaran, Hacettepe University
Dr. Nuran Danışman, Directorate General of Professional Services, Head of Building Materials Department, Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change
Mehmet Özkan EKİNCİ, Senior R&D and Innovation Engineer, Limak Cement
Cement and concrete decarbonisation progress: Industry Net Zero Action and Progress Report (Launch of Industry Net Zero Action and Progress Report)
Not live streamed
16:00 – 17:30
More details
Join us for the launch of our Cement Industry Net Zero Action and Progress report 2026/27.
The short presentations will be followed by an informal reception to launch our Pavilion.
Friday 13 November
Carbon Has a Price. Who Finances the Transition? 9:30 – 10:30
Carbon is increasingly becoming a cost of doing business, but the rules, exposure and ability to finance the transition vary significantly across geographies. This session explores how carbon pricing, CBAM, emissions trading and evolving trade frameworks are reshaping the economics of cement and other energy-intensive industries across Europe, Türkiye, West Africa and other emerging and export-oriented markets.
The discussion will examine how regions with different regulatory frameworks, energy systems, capital costs and access to technology can remain competitive while financing deep decarbonisation. From CCUS and electrification to calcined clay, alternative fuels, renewable energy and other low-carbon technologies, the panel will address the investment gap between climate ambition and industrial reality — and the role of green finance, development finance, carbon revenues, incentives and risk-sharing mechanisms in turning transition roadmaps into investable projects.
Global Goals, Local Action: Powering the Transition in the Global South 11:00 – 12:00
EMDEs will play a decisive role in the global transition to net zero. Much of the world’s future population growth, urbanisation and infrastructure development will take place across the Global South, driving significant growth in demand for cement and concrete. These materials will be essential to building housing, transport networks, energy infrastructure, industrial facilities and climate-resilient cities. Ensuring that this new infrastructure is built with increasingly low-carbon cement and concrete will therefore be critical to keeping global climate goals within reach.
While global climate goals provide an important direction of travel, there is no single pathway to decarbonisation. The transition must reflect local realities and development needs. The challenge is not just to reduce emissions from existing cement production, but to create the conditions in which low-carbon cement and concrete can become commercially viable and competitive as these markets grow.
The session will focus on:
Translating global net-zero goals into national decarbonsiation
Identifying the most effective decarbonisation pathways for different EMDE contexts.
Scaling commercially available solutions
The policy frameworks, financing mechanisms and partnerships needed to translate global goals into locally tailored decarbonisation pathways in EMDEs
How we can better align national climate commitments with cement and concrete decarbonisation pathways while supporting competitiveness, economic development and infrastructure growth
From Roadmaps to Bankable Projects: Financing the cement transition in Turkiye 14:00 – 15:00
The net zero transformation of the cement sector can be accelerated not only by improving existing operations, but also by jointly developing breakthrough technologies, bankable project portfolios, resilient construction solutions and workforce capabilities. The event focuses on how roadmaps, financing mechanisms and bankable project portfolios can be implemented to support Türkiye’s low-carbon cement transition.
The main axis of the event includes:
EBRD’s role in Türkiye’s industrial decarbonisation
The financing and coordination platform that TIDIP can provide for the cement sector
The contribution of the MAF programme to Türkiye’s cement sector in terms of technical assistance, pilot projects and policy framework support
The financial feasibility of decarbonisation investments from the perspective of a company CFO
The development of implementation partnerships among public authorities, financial institutions and sector actors
Moderator: Thomas Guillot / CEO, GCCA
Speakers:
Erdem Erdoğan / CFO, Çimsa
Hande Mercan Aygen / Deputy Director General for EU and Foreign Affairs, Republic Of Türkiye Ministry of Industry and Technology
EBRD
Saturday 14 November
The New Cement Equation; Less Clinker, More Resilience 11:00 – 12:00
This event will examine how lower-clinker cements and broader use of supplementary cementitious materials can deliver immediate embodied-carbon reductions while maintaining the performance, durability and affordability required for resilient infrastructure and cities. Calcined clay will be a central focus because of its near-term scalability and its potential to complement or replace traditional SCM sources that may become more constrained over time.
Monday 16 November
Scaling LC3 and low-clinker cement in Türkiye and globally 09:30 – 10:30
The session will explore how calcined clay (LC3), Boron-Activated Clinker and construction and demolition materials can accelerate the transition to low-carbon cement. It will focus on translating material innovation and resource availability into industrial-scale solutions, addressing technical, economic, regulatory and value-chain challenges while promoting circularity and collaboration across the cement, minerals and construction sectors.
Creating Lead Markets: From Climate Policy to Action 14:00 – 15:00
Technologies to decarbonise cement and concrete are available today and more are moving towards commercial deployment. However, scaling these solutions requires more than innovation alone. Companies need confidence that markets will reward lower-carbon products and support investment in new production capacity, alternative materials, energy systems and carbon capture technologies. We will explore how governments, industry, investors and buyers can work together to create lead markets for low-carbon cement and concrete. The discussion will focus on what has worked, where implementation gaps remain, and how public and private demand can be combined to accelerate deployment.
Tuesday 17 November
Building with Nature: A Nature-Positive Future for Cement and Concrete 10:00 – 11:00
