Procuring Concrete

As head contractors, we have a role in creating demand for low carbon materials and in influencing sustainable outcomes for our clients and the broader society. This is why we have added an embodied emissions limit to the concretes we procure and those procured by our subcontractors for our projects.

Maximum tolerance of emissions

In 2024, we set a maximum emissions tolerance in the concrete we buy in Australia for our public infrastructure and private projects. Our commitment is to always require that the concrete our suppliers provide does not exceed this maximum tolerance.

We have set an upper ceiling of 325 kilograms of carbon dioxide per cubic metre (kgCO2/m3) of concrete for mixes of 40 megapascals (MPa) and below, 365 for concretes of 50 MPa, 380 for concretes between 60 to 65 MPa, and 450 for concretes of 80 MPa and above, as shown in the table below.

Low Carbon Concrete

We have also set a limit for what Laing O’Rourke will consider as ‘low carbon concrete’ in Australia. This definition provides a benchmark for our company’s projects to set targets against, as allowed by the supply chain capabilities near sites as well as other governing factors, such as technical, contract and specifications.

Laing O’Rourke will consider as ‘low carbon’ all concretes with a global warming potential (GWP) under 250 kilograms of carbon dioxide per cubic metre (kgCO2/m3) for mixes of 40 megapascals (MPa) and below, 300 for concretes of 50 MPa, 340 for concretes between 60 to 65 MPa, and 380 for concretes of 80 MPa and above.