Decarbonising high temperature ceramics production through electrification

Name

Equipe Cerámicas and Roca Group

Job title

Ceramics makers

Heat-related processes in energy-intensive industries are a major source of greenhouse gas emissions and electrifying these processes - particularly at high temperatures - offers potential to reduce emissions. This is particularly valuable for the ceramics sector, where the vast majority emissions are heat related. 1

Decarbonising high temperature heating processes remains one of the greatest challenges in achieving industrial net-zero ceramics production and will likely require a combination of solutions, including electrification, hydrogen, bioenergy, carbon capture, as well as the use of alternative raw materials and circular economy strategies. 2

Process of Ceramics Production 3

Input of raw materials (clay, silica, alumina)
Grinding and mixing
Forming and shaping
Drying
Glazing/surface preparation
Firing
Cooling and inspection

In the ceramics sector, decarbonisation is particularly complex. The industry is characterised by a large number of small, dispersed production sites often located outside of major industrial clusters and close to where raw materials are sourced. Local supply chains mean sites are often unable to relocate easily. 4 In some cases, this makes the use of hydrogen less feasible due to limited local supply infrastructure and the high cost of transport and storage. As a result, electrification has received growing attention as a promising pathway for reducing emissions in ceramics production due to its greater efficiency and availability. 5

Firing is the most energy-intensive stage of ceramic tile production, accounting for approximately 60% of total energy use. Decarbonising ceramic kilns, traditionally powered by natural gas, represent the biggest opportunity for emissions reductions in the sector. 6 It is estimated that – theoretically - 78% of heat demands for ceramic production can be met with electricity and technologies already available. Up to 99% is electrifiable with technologies that are currently under development. 7

While technically feasible, high-temperature electrification faces significant practical and economic barriers:

Electricity is significantly more expensive than gas, leading to higher operating costs
Electrification technologies are mostly in relatively early stages of development and commercialisation, meaning they are expensive compared with traditional technologies
Electric heating components degrade rapidly under extreme temperatures and harsh chemical conditions
Achieving and maintaining uniform high temperatures with electricity is technically challenging, whereas gas-powered kilns are able to distribute heat uniformly more easily
Gas-firing results in different atmospheric conditions within kilns compared with electric heating, therefore creating colouring challenges with glazed materials
Retrofitting existing kilns is often impractical, instead requiring full redesign and new installation, requiring significant capital investment.
Scaling up electrical heating technologies for industrial purposes is complex, and large-scale electrification is highly reliant on stable, high-capacity power supplies, something that many ceramics production sites currently lack. 8

While significant challenges relating to the need for policy and investment support remain, rapid technological progress is opening up new pathways towards electrification in the ceramics industry.

This case study outlines some recent pilot developments demonstrating that high temperature electrification is possible across ceramics subsectors.

In Spain, Equipe Ceramics opened a fully electric, renewable powered kiln for producing small-format wall and floor tiles, which operates at 1,200°C and cuts emissions by 71%.
In Austria, Roca Group has opened the first fully electric tunnel kiln for sanitary ceramics operating at 1,220°C, and Wienerberger has launched the world’s first industrial-scale fully electric brick kiln operating at 960°C.
In addition, the EU-funded e-LITHE project is piloting three high-temperature electric furnaces in Spain, Greece and Germany to demonstrate new technologies for decarbonising the ceramics sector, including developing and testing advanced electrode-induction, microwave and hybrid electric kiln systems capable of operating at temperatures above 1000°C.

Equipe Cerámicas, Italcer Group, Spain – Floor & Wall Tiles

Equipe Cerámicas, a Spanish company part of Italian-based ceramics company Italcer Group, was founded in 1999. Equipe employs over 350 people and specialises in small-format floor and wall tiles. 9

As part of its 2030 energy savings targets and long-term decarbonisation strategy, Equipe opened an 100% electric kiln at its facility in Onda, Castellon in 2024. The new kiln is the result of a two-year research and development collaboration with the Institute of Ceramic Technology (ITC) at Jaume I University and kiln manufacturer Systemfoc, supported by a €2 million investment from Equipe Cerámicas 10 and an additional €878,000 grant from the Valencian Institute of Competitiveness and Innovation – a public body promoting industrial innovation. The project is part of Italcer Groups’ broader goal of decarbonising ceramic production by 2050. 11

At 30 metres long, the fully electric kiln replaces the traditional gas-fired system and runs entirely on renewable energy. Spain’s regional electricity grid already supplies around 70% renewable energy, and Equipe has supplemented this with the installation of on-site solar panels, which provide an additional 18% of the kiln’s energy. A heat recovery system further improves efficiency by redirecting heat to the pre-drying phase. 12

The kiln is expected to cut CO₂ emissions by 1,500 tonnes annually - reducing direct firing emissions by 71%, 13 lowering energy consumption by 30% and reducing company-wide costs by over 5% as a result of energy savings, increased use of renewables, and lower emissions-related costs. 14 Operating at 1,200°C, it can produce approximately 1,000 square metres of tiles per day, typical for medium-sized ceramics plant. 15 The project also developed a new raw material formulation to minimise emissions from thermal decomposition during firing,16 Importantly, the kiln produces products matching the quality of those made in conventional gas-fired kilns.

Italcer Group plans to expand the use of electric kilns across its other production sites and invest in technologies to capture and transform CO₂ emissions from production facilities into products which can be reused in industrial processes or sold as raw materials. 17

The project demonstrates the commercial and technical viability of fully-electric kilns at industrial scale, enabled by favourable local electricity costs, high renewable energy availability, public funding support, operational energy savings and a scalable, industrial-scale design rather than a pilot system.

Roca Group, Austria – Sanitary Ceramics

Roca Group, a global bathroom product manufacturer founded in Barcelona in 1917, operates in over 170 countries and employs more than 20,000 people worldwide. Its premium sanitary ceramics brand, Laufen produces washbasins, toilets and related products, with the Gmunden plant in Austria serving as the key production site, with a heritage spanning over 100 years. It is one of the five major Laufen production centres in central Europe. 18

As part its sustainability roadmap, Roca Group aims to achieve carbon neutrality by 2045, focusing on decarbonising energy-intensive ceramic production. 19 A major milestone towards this goal was reached in late 2023, when the company commissioned the world’s first fully electric tunnel kiln for sanitary ceramics at Gmunden, replacing the traditional gas-fired system. 20

Development began in 2019 in partnership with German kiln manufacturer Keramischer OFENBAU. Roca invested around €10 million – half for upgrading site infrastructure and transformer capacity, and half towards the design and construction of the kiln. 21 After four years of research and development, the technology is now patented. To accelerate its transition strategy, Roca Group also acquired a majority stake in the kiln manufacturer to facilitate further development of electric kilns across the ceramics industry. 22

The new kiln operates at a higher temperature 1,220°C using 100% renewable electricity, 23 consuming only one-third of the energy required for firing, while maintaining the same technical quality and output. Roca’s kiln is a larger scale tunnel kiln able to produce complex sanitaryware, compared to the Equipe kiln which is smaller and built for manufacturing ceramic tiles.

The Gmunden site was chosen strategically. It generates 40% of its electricity on-site via solar panels, while the remaining 60% comes from externally sourced certified green electricity. 24 The solar system produces up to four times the energy needed to power the kiln, enabling surplus renewable energy to cover the rest of the facility’s operations. As the site produces the most complex ceramics items, it provides an ideal setting for rigorous testing of the technology. The kiln is expected to cut 5000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions annually at Gmunden alone – a two-thirds reduction in energy use. 25 As a result, across the Roca Group direct CO₂ emissions fell 39% by the end of 2022, compared to a 2018 baseline. 26 As of 2024, the Gmunden plant is fully reliant on renewable energy and is a CO₂ neutral site for sanitary ceramics production, the first of its kind in the world.

The kiln has been in full operation since 2023, with the gas kiln shut in early 2024. Roca Group plans to install additional electric kilns across other facilities, and begin the electrification of kilns and dryers in sanitaryware production. The kiln is also capable of firing structural ceramics, technical ceramics and tableware, and with minor modifications, the same technology could be adapted for building ceramics and other applications across the industry. 26

Wienerberger, Austria – Brick Production

Founded in 1819, Wienerberger operates more than 200 production sites across 28 countries, producing around 50 million non-insulating clay blocks annually for external and internal walls. 28

As part of its Sustainability Programme 2026, Wienerberger has committed to a 25% reduction in production-related emissions, to generate 75% of revenue from net-zero building materials, and ensure that over 90% of products sold are recyclable.

Wienerberger’s GreenBricks initiative at its Uttendorf clay block plant in Upper Austria introduced the world’s first industrial-scale electric kiln for brick firing in early 2025, powered entirely by renewable electricity. While the company had already trialled a smaller-scale version of the technology for brick slips at its Belgian plant since 2020, the Uttendorf project represents full-scale implementation. 29

The electric tunnel is nearly 90 metres long and operates at temperatures up to 960°C. 30 It is expected to deliver up to 90% reduction in CO₂ emissions compared to traditional gas-firing. Energy consumption is also projected to decrease by one-third, improving overall efficiency. 31

The kiln is powered entirely by renewable electricity, sourced from a combination of on-site solar panel systems, with rooftop solar capacity doubled, and a new direct 5km high-voltage line connecting the plant to local hydropower electric sources. To further boost efficiency, the plant also now has a 25% extension of the dryer section – to enhance heat recovery - and three-high temperature heat pumps that convert waste heat from the tunnel dryer into usable energy. The company has also improved the input materials for clay mixtures, replacing traditional coal and paper fibre with locally sourced sawdust from sawmills. 32

Wienerberger invested €30 million in to the project. €5 million in capital expenditure and €1.7 million in research and development were subsidised by the Austrian government. The project was supported through the New Energy for Industry (NEFI), a national climate fund aimed at accelerating industrial decarbonisation. NEFI includes 23 projects funded by the Austrian federal government. 33

The project involved a complete redesign of the production site, using digital planning tools and advanced simulation models developed in partnership with the Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT). 34 This included the creation of a ‘digital twin’ (virtual model) of the kiln, dryer and heat pumps to simulate calculations for the new furnace and optimise the processes. This enabled the impact of changes to be predicted and amendments made. 35

Planning began in 2021, with construction starting in 2022. Production was temporarily paused between summer 2023 and November 2024. The kiln became fully operational in early 2025. 36 Now running at full capacity, the plant can produce 270 tonnes of clay blocks per day.

European Union (EU) Pilot Project on Electrification of Ceramics

The European ceramic sector currently emits 19 million tons of CO₂ annually, accounting for about 1% of total industrial emissions regulated by the EU Emissions Trading System. 37 The EU is currently funding research pilots under the ‘Electrifying High-Temperature Ceramics’ (e-LITHE project) which seeks to design, implement and demonstrate new electrified high-temperature heating technologies for the ceramic industry. 38 To advance electrification, the project is piloting three furnaces in three different pilots, each targeting processes over 1000°C.

Spain: The Spanish pilot involves implementing an advanced electric heating system for ceramic kilns, capable of melting materials up to 1,500°C. The furnace combines electrode heading – which passes an electric current directly through the material – with induction heating – which generates heat electromagnetically without direct contact to maintain fluidity and control temperature. Each electrode is individually controlled through electronic systems, and auxiliary burners provide start up and backup heat to ensure operational reliability. 39 The pilot also integrates a digital twin, a continuously updated virtual replica of the furnace system, to simulate and analyse real-time behaviour.

Greece: The pilot focuses on microwave-based alumina calcination – a high temperature ceramic process that uses microwave energy to heat and chemically transform alumina precursors into crystalline alumina or related ceramics phases. Operating at temperatures up to 1,000°C, the microwave furnace enables automatic adjustments to how microwave energy is transferred into the materials as its electrical properties change during heating, real-time control of thermal and electromagnetic signals with automatic adjustment to ensure consistent operation, and an accurate feeding system that controls how long materials remain in the furnace to maintain process stability and quality. A digital twin monitors furnace operations and collects data to improve performance and quality. 40

Germany: The pilot demonstrates the partial or full electrification of existing brick-firing tunnel kilns without compromising product quality or increasing energy consumption. The project is retrofitting a large tunnel kiln into a hybrid furnace that combines electric heating elements with conventional burner technology. Heating elements mounted on kiln walls provide radiant heating directly to the material via infrared waves, while a high temperature internal circulation fan enhances heat transfer, and the hybrid burner improves efficiency across the firing process. 41

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