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Betolar signed today its first commercial agreement in India. The company and three Indian concrete manufacturers have entered into commercial agreements to use a low-carbon Geoprime solution that uses industrial side streams for a cement alternative. The contract partners are Sneh Precast, Shiv Tiles and Balaji Cement Products. The company's product offering focuses on various concrete products for infrastructure and environmental construction, such as pipes and paving materials. The three signed commercial agreements aim for a total concrete production volume of 250,000 tonnes by the end of 2023. Betolar Plc is a Finnish materials technology company that offers the production of sustainable and low-carbon concrete with the Geoprime® solution. The solution converts several previously unused high-volume industrial side streams into a substitute for cement. “Last week, we opened up the Asian market with a commercial deal in Vietnam. We are now continuing to commercialize our Geoprime solution in India, a major construction market in Asia” Juha Pinomaa, Betolar's Head of Asia Operations. The contract partners have the right to use the Geoprime product family of solutions developed by Betolar in the manufacture of concrete products, combined with continuous product development and expert services, and in the future also data support. The contractors also have the right to use the Geoprime trademark in their products manufactured in accordance with the concept. The largest of the three companies is Sneh Precast, which specializes in the production of demanding, coloured paving tiles. “In our company values, we are committed to being at the forefront of developing and adopting technologies that promote sustainable development in our industry. Betolar's company DNA has the same commitment to continuous development as we do. What is great about the Geoprime solution, is that the production process does not have to be redesigned, but the low-carbon solution can be implemented by adjusting the existing process,” Pravin Chaudhari, CEO of Sneh Precast. In addition to the three commercial agreements, Betolar has signed a letter of intent with one of India’s largest conglomerates, Godrej & Boyce. The agreement is expected to lead to a commercial agreement upon completion of the pilot phase. Godrej Construction, part of the Godrej & Boyce Mfg Co Ltd, builds sustainable building materials and provides comprehensive civil engineering solutions. The company is, among other things, involved in the construction of the Mumbai metro network. The turnover of Godrej & Boyce Mfg Co Ltd is 115 billion INR equalling EUR 1.4 billion. The Indian government is pushing hard for the country’s construction industry to shift to more environmentally friendly building materials. Replacing cement with industrial side streams in concrete production is one of the key means. The government aims to reduce CO2 emissions by 45 per cent by 2030 and to strive for carbon neutrality by 2070. “The agreements now signed support the Indian government’s climate goals and open up significant opportunities to promote the local circular economy. We have tested multiple local side streams in India which opens an opportunity to use an increasing amount of various industrial side streams for the production of Geoprime concrete,”Juha Pinomaa. Sustainable housing company TARA is making efforts to build affordable housing in India with rural entrepreneurs. Betolar and TARA have been working together for over two years. TARA has supported Betolar in developing solutions for utilizing different local side streams for concrete manufacturing. “The construction sector is one of the biggest contributors to CO2 emissions globally. New low-carbon, widely affordable building materials such as Geoprime solution are fundamental for fulfilling national goals for universal housing and robust infrastructure while achieving a rapid reduction in India’s carbon footprint,” says Dr Ashok Khosla, Chairman of TARA. “Leveraging TARA’s sustainability and local expertise, combined with Betolar’s innovative materials technology, we are able to provide sustainable cement-free alternatives to the Indian market."Betolar has developed the Geoprime solution for the production of durable, sustainable, and low-carbon concrete by utilising industrial side streams as an alternative for cement. Betolar thus enables the green transition of different industries and makes concrete sustainable building material. The Geoprime solution brings immediate reductions in CO2 emissions without major changes in the manufacturing process. Betolar is developing a recipe-optimising data platform that will bring together concrete manufacturers and sidestream producers.