Mitchell cement plant awarded $500M to study feasibility of carbon capture and storage

MITCHELL, Ind. — The U.S. Department of Energy announced it is awarding up to $500 million in funding for carbon capture, transport and storage at the Heidelberg Materials Mitchell K4 cement plant, putting Mitchell, Indiana, at the forefront of carbon dioxide emission reduction in the cement industry. 

“This no doubt an exciting day for Heidelberg Materials, for the town of Mitchell, for Lawrence County,” Chris Ward, president and CEO of Heidelberg Materials North America, said at a press conference Monday morning. “This is a day all of us at Heidelberg Materials should be proud of and I would say energized by.”

The funding will be applied to the early steps of the carbon storage project to determine its feasibility in terms of geology and engineering. 

The Mitchell project is one of 33 selected out of 400 applications across the country as part of the DOE’s $6 billion investment in heavy manufacturing decarbonization. In addition, DOE Under Secretary for Infrastructure David Crane said, the Mitchell project is one of six to receive the maximum federal funding. 

He said the Mitchell plant stood out in its application because of the collaborative efforts between Heidelberg, the United Steelworkers and the communities of Mitchell and Bedford. 

“In the carbon-constrained future, this plant will continue to lead the way in the production of low to no carbon cement,” Crane said. “By doing that it’s going to provide the jobs — the community support — for the remainder of the 21st century.”

Doug Duncan, local president of the United Steelworkers, said the project will benefit the workers at the plant and surrounding areas. 

“It will create sustained, good-paying jobs for our members and their families,” Duncan said. 

Gov. Eric Holcomb said he will look back fondly on this announcement when he leaves office. It is a statement heard round the world, he said, in the advancement of industrial sustainability. 

“I believe that generations from now are going to look back on this day and the decisions that were made … and look at them as some of the most wise decisions that were made in terms of conservation of our resources and of our environment,” Holcomb said. “Thank you all very much who had a hand in getting us to this day.”

Carbon capture is a strategy for combating climate change by capturing carbon dioxide emissions produced by the use of fossil fuels before they enter the atmosphere. Cement production accounts for about 8% of all CO2 emissions worldwide and is one of the most energy-intensive products on the planet, according to a 2023 article published by Scientific American.

The Mitchell plant plans to store the byproducts in a 7,250-foot deep well on site, the company said last year. 

The project aligns with the company’s goal of capturing and storing 10 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions cumulatively by 2030, Ward said. 

He said Heidelberg is also exploring ways it can use green energy in the course of the project.

“It’s very important to us, what sort of energy we use to drive the carbon capture facility,” Ward said. “We’ll be working with the local power companies.”

Because of the front-end work needed to verify feasibility of carbon capture and storage on site, Ward said actual construction likely will not begin for 18 to 24 months. 

Indiana's first carbon capture project received permits from the Environmental Protection Agency in February. Those permits allow for CO2 from a fertilizer plant in Terre Haute to be stored in two wells in Vigo and Vermillion counties.

This story was produced in partnership with the Media School at Indiana University.