Replacing fossil fuels with waste-derived fuels (WDF) is one of the fastest-growing areas in the energy recovery sector, especially when recycling is no longer viable - either because the product's life cycle is exhausted or because of the complexity of the materials that make it up.

Flows such as mixed plastics, end-of-life textiles and footwear, paperboard utilities, packaging with aluminum foil, non-recyclable fractions of tires or furniture wood are transformed into alternative fuels for use in cement kilns.

Portugal is also the destination for waste from other European countries - such as the UK, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Belgium - which is sent for recycling, CDR preparation, energy recovery or, ultimately, landfill.

The entire inter-community waste exchange process complies with European Regulation 1013/2006, with mandatory registration on an electronic platform managed by the environmental authorities of the countries involved - the Portuguese Environment Agency being the competent authority in Portugal.

To guarantee traceability and compliance, AVE uses independent entities such as SGS to validate the type and quality of the waste at source, through sampling and certified laboratory analysis.

AVE supplies waste for the production of alternative fuels used in the kilns of the six cement plants in mainland Portugal.

Based on the best practices of preparation, analysis and co-processing, we have made a significant contribution to climate goals: we have avoided more than 3 million tons of CO₂ emissions and saved more than 2 billion tons of fossil fuels. Imported waste accounts for around a third of this impact.

This impact is shared by everyone: the environment, companies, citizens and the country itself.