CarbiCrete has secured an investment from NGen to integrate its decarbonised concrete technology into a masonry plant located in Port Colborne, Ontario, Canada. 

Project partner Canal Block owns and operates the plant.  

NGen's contribution of C$3m ($2.37m) is part of an overarching C$8m project aimed at designing, building, and installing a system that will see the incorporation of CarbiCrete's curing technologies into the concrete block-making operations of Canal Block. 

Canal Block president Durk Bylsma said: “Canal Block has had a long history of developing sustainable products for the masonry industry.  

“We are excited to partner with CarbiCrete to bring this truly revolutionary technology to market and further our commitment to be an ecologically and socially responsible manufacturer.” 

The patented process developed by CarbiCrete substitutes cement with a byproduct from steel-making. 

The technology avoids emissions related to cement and uses carbon dioxide in the curing process, which is mineralised and thereby removed from the atmosphere.  

The solution is now in commercial deployment in Quebec, Canada, through Patio Drummond, a hardscape manufacturer, following two other projects funded by NGen. 

CarbiCrete CEO Chris Stern said: “Consumers in Quebec can buy cement-free concrete blocks made with our technology today. And so, I’m very excited that through our partnership with Canal Block, we will be able to offer the same to builders in Ontario.  

“We are tremendously grateful for NGen’s continued support, which is helping Canada position itself as the undisputed world leader in low-carbon concrete.”