René Aldach, Chief Financial Officer of HeidelbergCement, said: "Even though we had to record a declining result in the first half of the year, we were able to further reduce our net debt and expand our financial cushion. With our new syndicated credit line and the bond issuance programme, both of which are now linked to the achievement of our climate targets, we have taken a major step towards sustainable financing. The company's liquidity is secured even in challenging times." Good progress in reducing the carbon footprint In the first half of 2022, HeidelbergCement reduced the specific CO₂ emissions by around 2.5% compared with the end of 2021. In May 2022, HeidelbergCement significantly tightened its CO₂ reduction targets at the Capital Markets Day and aims to achieve a value of 400 kg CO₂/t of cementitious material already in 2030. In addition to optimising products and processes, the company is focusing in particular on the capture, utilisation, and storage of CO₂ (CCUS).