Saraburi

Saraburi is limestone made industrial. Twelve major quarries extract the bedrock 100 kilometers north of Bangkok; the Sila Sanon quarry alone produces high-grade aggregate for Thailand's insatiable construction sector. SCG's cement plants cluster here because the raw material sits underfoot. The province doesn't just make cement—it is cement, the geological accident that shaped Thailand's construction economy.

The Thai Cement Manufacturers Association chose Saraburi for its Net Zero 2050 pilot: the "Saraburi Sandbox." By late 2024, over 80% of local construction projects used hydraulic cement; alternative fuels and renewable energy reached 26% of industry power consumption. SCG allocates $6 billion through 2030 for sustainability upgrades, including heat battery storage and carbon capture feasibility studies at its Saraburi plants. Princeton University studied the province's renewable potential. Ordinary Portland cement will be phased out by 2025.

The transformation is existential. Saraburi's cement industry generated decades of prosperity by burning limestone into building material—now it must decarbonize the very process that defines it. Napier grass plantations supply alternative fuel. Carbon capture prototypes aim to trap CO2 from kiln exhaust. By 2026, Saraburi becomes the test case for whether heavy industry can reinvent itself before climate regulation forces the choice.