Umm Al Qura Cement Company

Precision, Efficiency, and a Clear Transition Roadmap from the Makkah Region

A Young Plant with Mature Ambitions

Umm Al Qura Cement Company (UACC) began commercial production in 2016 from its facility near the Taif Governorate in the Makkah region, located along the Taif-Riyadh highway approximately 100 kilometers from Taif Airport. With an annual clinker production capacity of 1.92 million tons and a cement production capacity of 2.3 million tons, the plant is a mid-scale producer operating in one of the most strategically important construction markets in the Kingdom, serving the western and southern regions that encompass Makkah, Jeddah, and the broader Hajj and Umrah infrastructure corridor.

What makes UACC’s story worth examining closely is not the scale of the operation but the quality of the performance trajectory. Since commencing operations less than a decade ago, the company has built a documented record of energy efficiency improvement, clinker factor reduction, waste reduction, and environmental management that places it among the top performers in the sector on several measurable dimensions. The direction of travel on every major sustainability indicator is unambiguously the right one, and the roadmap for the next phase of the transition is already in execution.

Energy Efficiency

Third in the Kingdom on Electrical Performance

The SEEC 2024 Performance Card results are the most authoritative external benchmark available for comparing UACC’s energy performance against its sector peers. On electrical efficiency, UACC ranked third out of 19 cement plants assessed in Saudi Arabia. That is a top-tier performance position, achieved by reducing overall plant specific power consumption from 109 kWh per ton of cement in 2021 to 98.1 kWh per ton in 2025, a reduction of approximately 10 percent over four years driven by grinding efficiency improvements, separator optimization, and systematic reduction in auxiliary power consumption across the facility.

On thermal efficiency, UACC achieved a specific heat consumption of 2.97 MMBTU per ton of clinker, ranking 11th out of 38 cement plants nationally. This places the company in the upper third of the sector on thermal performance, reflecting a well-managed kiln system with stable combustion control and effective process discipline.

These rankings are not simply favorable numbers. They represent UACC’s position relative to every other operating cement facility in the Kingdom assessed under the same framework, using the same measurement methodology and the same performance boundaries. Third nationally on electrical efficiency, in a plant less than a decade old, is a result that reflects both the quality of the installed technology and the operational discipline of the team managing it.

Complementing these headline figures is a plant-level heat integration measure that demonstrates the kind of systems-level thinking that compounds efficiency gains. The plant design incorporates a waste heat utilization system that captures exhaust heat from the power plant and uses it to preheat heavy fuel oil at the main storage tanks. This integrated heat recovery loop reduces the external energy input required for fuel handling, improving the overall thermal balance of the facility at no additional fuel cost. It is a small but instructive example of how UACC approaches efficiency: systematically, at the system level, rather than through isolated interventions.

Clinker Factor Reduction

The Carbon Story Behind the Numbers

Clinker production is the primary source of CO2 in cement manufacturing, accounting for both the fuel-related emissions from kiln heating and the process emissions from limestone calcination. Every percentage point of clinker replaced by supplementary cementitious materials in the final cement product reduces both the energy demand and the CO2 intensity of that product proportionally. This makes the clinker factor the single most important variable in the decarbonization equation for any cement producer.

UACC has been systematically reducing its clinker factor across its product range through continuous process optimization and raw material utilization improvements. The progress is documented over multiple years, with a specific product in the portfolio achieving a clinker factor as low as 74 percent. That figure is among the most aggressive clinker substitution levels being achieved at commercial scale in the Saudi market and reflects genuine product and process engineering capability, since maintaining cement quality and SASO compliance at high substitution rates requires tight control of SCM chemistry, grinding parameters, and quality testing protocols.

The average clinker factor across the full product mix has also declined steadily, with the 2025 reduction representing a meaningful step in material efficiency and a direct contribution to lower carbon intensity per ton of cement produced. UACC produces Ordinary Portland Cement, Portland Pozzolana Cement, Sulphate-Resistant Cement, and Portland Limestone Cement, giving the company a product range that covers both standard and specialized construction applications while offering customers a choice of carbon intensity profiles.

The 2023 SIRI assessment identified clinker factor reduction and SCM utilization as directly connected to the company’s strategic priority of environmental and green plant development. The strategic plans underway at the time of the assessment explicitly identified green initiatives as a priority direction for investment and process development, and the 2025 performance data confirms that those priorities have been translated into measurable results.

Waste Management

A 52 Percent Reduction in One Year

Environmental management at UACC has delivered results in 2024 to 2025 that are among the most dramatic in this article series. Total solid waste generation decreased by approximately 52 percent between 2024 and 2025. Non-hazardous solid waste fell from 286 tons to 150 tons. Hazardous solid waste fell from 129 tons to 8 tons, a reduction of approximately 67 percent. Liquid hazardous waste decreased from 168 tons to 114 tons over the same period.

These reductions reflect a combination of improved waste segregation practices, better process control that reduces waste generation at source, and structured recycling programs. Approximately 190 tons of used bag filters were successfully recycled during this period, diverting a significant volume of industrial material from disposal. Additionally, UACC recycles 100 percent of the alkali dust generated during kiln operation by reintegrating it into cement grinding, eliminating this waste stream entirely within the production process.

Water management deserves specific mention given the severe water stress of the Taif region. UACC does not draw from underground water resources and relies entirely on purchased water transported from external sources, making every liter of water consumed a direct cost and environmental consideration. The company has eliminated water use in raw material grinding and in gas conditioning, the latter achieved through optimized kiln operation that maintains gas temperatures within the range where water injection is not required. Specific water consumption has been maintained at approximately 23 kg per ton of cement across both 2024 and 2025 despite increased production volumes, and 100 percent of treated wastewater is recycled for cement mill operations and agricultural purposes.

The land management program has addressed a specific environmental challenge unique to the plant’s location: wind-driven dust from exposed sandy surfaces. UACC covered approximately 100,000 square meters of plant area with natural basalt gravel, significantly reducing dust dispersion within the facility and improving environmental conditions for both the plant workforce and the surrounding area.

Digital Transformation

The SAP S/4HANA Upgrade

UACC’s digital transformation journey is at an important inflection point. The company operates SAP ECC 6.0 as its enterprise resource planning backbone, supported by ABB 800xA for production automation covering Level 0 to Level 2 of the ISA-95 automation hierarchy. The SIRI assessment conducted in 2023 identified the priority dimensions for the next phase of transformation as Vertical Integration, Horizontal Integration, Shop Floor Intelligence, and Workforce Learning and Development, and the company’s internal plans have been structured around those priorities.

The most significant digital initiative currently in execution is the upgrade from SAP ECC 6.0 to SAP S/4HANA. This is more than a software version upgrade. SAP S/4HANA enables real-time integration between production and financial data that SAP ECC cannot deliver, improved production planning through process manufacturing functionality specifically designed for continuous flow industries like cement, enhanced cost monitoring with granular visibility into production cost per ton, and faster decision-making through real-time reporting rather than batch-processed overnight reports. The transition to SAP S/4HANA creates the data infrastructure required for the vertical and horizontal integration improvements the SIRI assessment identified as the highest-value transformation priorities.

The SIRI assessment placed UACC with 14 of 16 dimensions performing on par with or above the General Manufacturing industry average, with zero dimensions in the bottom performers range. Shop Floor Connectivity achieved Band 4 (Real-Time), reflecting the quality of the ABB 800xA connectivity infrastructure. Facility Intelligence achieved Band 3 (Diagnostic), supported by real-time monitoring from the Wartsila and CNBM O&M contractors. The Strategy and Governance dimension achieved Band 3 (Implementation), recognizing that a formal long-term digitization and modernization plan had been developed and was in active execution at the time of assessment.

The Energy Transition Roadmap

Gas, Grid, and Solar

UACC’s forward-looking energy strategy addresses all three dimensions of its energy cost and emissions profile: fuel type, grid connection reliability, and renewable generation. The three programs are being executed in parallel, each with a defined timeline and technical scope.

The natural gas transition is the most strategically significant of the three. UACC currently operates on heavy fuel oil, which carries both a higher carbon intensity and a more volatile price exposure than natural gas. The gas pipeline connection to the facility is scheduled to become available in 2028, and rather than waiting for the connection to materialize before beginning technical preparation, UACC has initiated its groundwork now. Technical and commercial evaluations for the in-house gas reduction station are currently in progress. The gas burner system has already been finalized with Fives Pillard, a globally recognized leader in industrial combustion systems, ensuring that when the pipeline connection is ready, the plant can transition without delay. This sequencing reflects the same forward-thinking operational discipline visible in the plant’s energy efficiency and waste management programs.

The grid station connection project is currently under implementation and is expected to be completed by August 2026. A reliable grid connection strengthens the plant’s power supply security and supports improved energy efficiency by reducing dependence on captive power generation. The third energy initiative is the development of a 10 MW solar photovoltaic project, which is currently in the exploration and feasibility stage. A 10 MW solar installation would provide a meaningful share of the plant’s electrical demand from clean generation, reducing Scope 2 emissions and lowering the variable energy cost per ton of cement produced.

Taken together, these three energy transition programs constitute a phased, technically grounded pathway from the current HFO-dependent operating model toward a lower-carbon, more cost-efficient energy configuration by the end of the decade.

The SEEC Framework as a Performance Anchor

One dimension of UACC’s sustainability story that is worth highlighting specifically for its institutional significance is the company’s engagement with the SEEC Energy Efficiency Framework. UACC submits data annually, participates in validation and measurement and verification processes, and tracks its performance against the framework’s targets and peer benchmarks. The 2024 performance card confirms compliance with the second cycle annual requirements, with electrical efficiency performance better than the target of 111.5 kWh per ton of cement.

This level of engagement with external performance accountability creates a virtuous cycle. The SEEC ranking creates an incentive to improve, the improvement data creates a verified record, and the verified record informs the next round of investment decisions. For a company of UACC’s age and scale, embedding itself in this accountability framework from an early stage in its operational life is a strategic decision that will compound in value as the framework’s requirements become more stringent over time.

What This Means for the Sector

From FCI’s perspective, UACC represents a specific type of industrial story that the Saudi cement sector needs more documentation of: a younger producer that designed its sustainability agenda into its operating model from the beginning rather than retrofitting it onto a legacy facility, and that has executed that agenda with the precision and discipline required to generate sector-leading performance results.

The combination of a third-place national ranking on electrical efficiency, a documented clinker factor reduction to 74 percent in its most advanced product, a 52 percent total waste reduction in a single year, and a structured multi-year energy transition roadmap covering natural gas, grid reliability, and solar generation is not a coincidence. It reflects consistent strategic intent, operational discipline, and a management culture that measures what matters and improves what it measures.

The trajectory from here, with SAP S/4HANA integration underway, the natural gas transition in technical preparation, and the solar project in development, points toward a plant that will be meaningfully more efficient, lower-carbon, and digitally capable by 2028 than it is today. That is the definition of a sustainable industrial trajectory.