CARBONZERO GLOBAL CONFERENCE&EXHIBITION
27–29 October 2026 · Tangla Hotel Brussels, Belgium
CONFERENCE PROGRAM
Draft
OCTOBER 27 — TECHNICAL VISIT
Exclusive Technical Visit: Holcim Go4ZERO Plant, Obourg, Belgium
25 seats only, first come–first served, VIP ticket holders only.
DAY 1 — OCTOBER 28
Alternative Fuels, Energy Systems & Kiln Technologies
Opening Keynote — Alternative Fuels: Driving the Net-Zero Cement Transition 1.15 h
• Beatrice Ene, Managing Director and Head of Events, industry Link
• Mahendra Singhi, Board Member, GCCA / Strategic Advisor, Dalmia Cement
Inaugural keynote
• Stany Vaes, Director Sustainability & Corporate Affairs, Holcim
“Achieving Near-Zero Cement Production by Triggering All Decarbonization Levers: The GO4ZERO Case”
• Alexander Makhlay, Senior Editor, Argus Media
“Global Cement and Clinker Trade and Market Developments”
Technical Session — Kiln & Energy Systems Innovation 40’
• Hans-Jürgen Klischat, Refratechnik Cement GmbH
“It’s Physics (and Economy): Refractories’ Influence on Ecology and Profitability”
• Stefan Puntke, Refratechnik Cement GmbH
“It’s Physics (and Economy): Refractories’ Influence on Ecology and Profitability”
Co-presenter
COFFEE BREAK 11-11.40
Panel 1 — Scaling Alternative Fuels in Cement Kilns 30’
• Nikos Nikolakakos, Environment & Resources Manager, Cement Europe
“Use of Alternative Fuels in the EU Cement Industry”
Moderator & speaker
• Adriana Fernandez, Industrial Decarbonization Analyst, UNIDO
Industry Case Studies — Alternative Fuels and SCMs at Industrial Scale 1h
• Mohammed Medhat Zaki, Head of Alternative Fuels & H₂ Operations Management, Arabian Cement Company
“Advancing Alternative Fuel Technologies: Maximizing AF Thermal Substitution for Cement Decarbonization”
• Bodil Recke, Global Cement BU Manager, ABB
• Pilar Hidalgo, Head of Innovation, Cementos Las Cruz
“ERACLITUS: Shaping the Future of Cement through Material Innovation”
LUNCH 13.10-14.30
Technical Panel — Alternative Fuel Handling & Process Optimization 45’
• Paulo Mazzei, FCT Combustion
• Alejandro Yepes, Seal Plus Motofrenos
• Andres Ponce, CEO, WTEnergy Advanced Solutions
• Bernd Henrich, Area Manager, Gebr. Pfeiffer
“How Gebr. Pfeiffer Mills Support the Cement Industry on the Path to Carbon Zero”
Panel 2 — Circular Economy, Waste Valorization & Critical Mineral Recovery 45’
• Martina Bassan, Corporate Affairs Director, European Metals
• Isabela Stefoni, Environmental Manager, PORR Construct
COFFEE BREAK 16-16.30
Panel — Standards, Policy & Market Readiness 45’
• Kerry Sutton, Executive Director, NEU: An ACI Center of Excellence for Carbon Neutral Concrete
“The State of Low-Carbon Concrete in the Built Environment – NEU’s Perspective”
• Maria del Mar Rojas, Engagement Manager Europe, Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi)
“Operationalizing the Corporate Net-Zero Standard V2.0 for Cement: A Call to Action for the Sector”
• Leon de Graaf, President, Business Advisors for CBAM Coalition
“Positioning Low-Carbon Cement for commercialization under CBAM and the ETS1 Revision”
Awards Ceremony 17.30
End of day
Dinner 19.00
DAY 2 — OCTOBER 29
Cementitious Materials, Low-Clinker Cement & Climate Resilience
Beyond Clinker: Transforming Cementitious Materials for Net-Zero Construction 1.20h
• Dr. Hongyan Ma, Professor, Missouri University of Science and Technology
“Accelerating Carbon-Zero Cement: Carbon-Negative Initiatives through Transformative Carbon Mineralization”
• Sumit Srivastava
“A Century of Evolution in Cement and SCMs: From Performance-Driven to Resource-Driven Binder Design”
• Grant Quasha, Eco Material Technologies
Presentation title to be confirmed
Panel 4 — Cementitious Materials Innovation & Raw Material Strategy 30’
• Quentin Philippe, CEO, Alithic
• Loren Burnett, President & CEO, Prometheus Materials Inc.
• Jean-Philippe Benard, Chief Executive Cementitious Business & Energy, TITAN Group
• Cobi Busst, Beaumont Bailey
“Building SCM Teams at Scale: Why Cement Needs a New Leadership Model”
COFFEE BREAK 10.50- 11.30
Technical Session — Low-Clinker Cement Design, Processing & Quality 1h
• Dr. Mohammed Fouad, Strategy and Business Excellence Director, Riyadh Cement Company
“Industrial Strategies for Low-Clinker and Performance-Based Cements”
• Hatice Cebeci & M. Burak Uzun, Limak Cement
“Research to Reality: Limestone Calcined Clay Cement with Boron Activated Clinker”
• Franz Heller, Division Manager DACH, UK & Ireland, Firefly
“Advancing Fire Prediction, Prevention and Protection for a Net-Zero Future”
Technical Session — Mitigation & Adaptation Through Cement and Concrete
• Frank Mruk, National Ready Mix Concrete Association (USA)
Placement to be confirmed
LUNCH 12.50-13.40
Panel — Carbon Capture, Utilization & Storage (CCUS) 1h
• Vincent Michel, Consultant
“Lessons Learned on Developing Large-Scale CC(U)S Projects: The GO4ZERO Program Director Perspective”
• Irene Dominguez Perez, Policy Manager, Embodied Carbon & Lead Markets, Bellona Europa
“Concrete Carbonation: Climate Solution or Accounting Illusion?”
• Elena Rubio Portillo, Engineering Project Manager for CCUS Projects, CEMEX EMEA
“From Ambition to Execution: Leading Carbon Capture Projects in the Cement Industry”
• Duncan McLachlan, VP Growth & Enterprise, io Consulting
• Eadbhard Pernot, Executive Director, Carbon Management Europe
Placement to be confirmed
Panel 6 — Financing & Commercialization of Low-Carbon Cement 45’
• Dr. Josilene Ferrer
“Carbon Markets and the Decarbonisation of the Cement Industry: From Compliance to Strategic Transformation —
Insights from China and Challenges for Brazil”
Moderator
• Marta Diez, Country Manager Spain, CFP
• Luyue Tan, Carbon Analyst, London Stock Exchange Group
“Carbon as the New Currency”
COFFEE BREAK 15.30-16.00
CEO & Executive Roundtable — Leading the Transition to a Competitive, Climate-Resilient Cement Industry 40’
• Claudia Albertini, CEO, Holcim Belgium
• Mahendra Singhi, Board Member, GCCA / Strategic Advisor, Dalmia Cement
• Jean-Philippe Benard, TITAN Group
