Major coal supplier, Alpha Natural Resources has done a strategic equity investment in CERATECH, a Virginia-based producer of ‘green cement’, which reduces CO2 emissions and landfill requirements from the cement manufacturing method. The green cement uses 95% of waste fly ash, a by-product of coal combustion, from electric utilities.
CERATECH’s innovative technology facilitates the recycling of fly ash. About 42 million tons of ash produced per year is dumped in a landfill. By producing one ton of green cement, the company eliminates nearly 1,800 lbs of landfill waste.
CERATECH’s green cement is an ideal substitute for portland cement in terms of reliability and strength. It fulfills the requirement of green construction regulations, especially the LEED certification conditions of the US Green Building Council, as no other cement in the market contains over 90% of fly ash.
On a completely diluted basis, Alpha Natural Resources will get 10.3% equity interest in CERATECH based on its initial investment. If certain conditions are satisfied, Alpha will have an option to increase its stake to 28.3% of the fully diluted stocks. However, the company has not revealed the amount of initial investment in CERATECH.