BackBlogUnveiling Carbon-Storing Harbour Infrastructure with Hakkers
2025-06-10Paebbl
We worked with Hakkers, a leading Dutch construction and engineering firm, to release this project at the Port of Rotterdam that significantly reduces the environmental impact of maritime anchoring in a world's first. By substituting part of the traditional cement content in the anchoring mix with Paebbl’s product, we are setting a new standard for climate friendly infrastructure.

Picture: Quay walls are retaining structures along ports, rivers, or canals providing stability for vessels to berth safely. Anchors, drilled deep beneath the wall, secure and reinforce these critical structures. Although largely hidden from view, anchoring is vital to preventing movement or collapse under heavy loads and tidal forces.

For this quay wall application, 15% of the cement content is swapped with our materials, resulting in up to 110 kg of CO₂ stored per tonne of anchoring mix. Hakkers also used fully electric drilling equipment on-site, further reducing emissions.

Cement production currently accounts for about 8% of global carbon emissions, meaning more sustainable construction solutions are urgently needed. Paebbl accelerates the natural mineralisation process by a factor of a million, turning harmful emissions into stable mineral form on an industrial scale.

Picture: Jan van Lith and Jeroen Kuup (Hakkers) and the Paebbl team: Ana Luisa Vaz, Jing Cui, Julia Oomens-Meer