An inside look at the future of clean industry

At the Amrize Alpena cement plant, on the western shore of Lake Huron, a large array of solar panels juts off the side of the road in neat but asymmetric rows. 

The 25-megawatt array was stunning when we captured drone footage of it at a recent sunrise, offering a powerful visual of how clean energy has become part of Alpena’s industrial landscape and the future of cement manufacturing. It’s also an important symbol of the future for Amrize, the town of Alpena, Michigan, and possibly an entire industry. 

Alpena has hosted the plant for more than 100 years, and its cement was used to build the Gordie Howe International Bridge, the Detroit home stadiums for the Lions, Tigers, and Pistons, and other projects across the country. Thanks to Amrize’s commitment to clean energy and sustainability, the facility just might be there for another century. 

So, when Ceres got an opportunity to work with the company on a video project documenting that success, we jumped at it. The video captures what it’s going to take to drive the future of American manufacturing and the pride that Amrize’s staff in Alpena have about leading the way.  

“We have four or five generations of employees that work here,” Jeff Scott, plant manager at the Alpena facility, told us. “And if we want the fifth and the sixth generation of employees to be here, we have to continue to work to be the most efficient, the most sustainable, the most environmentally friendly plant.” 

Amrize Alpena demonstrates how clean energy can be an economic and business asset for Michigan. The solar array was completed in 2024 after years of persistence and planning by Amrize. It covers 90% of the plant’s daytime energy needs and has cut its carbon emissions by 25,000 tons annually.  

The company also uses an innovative waste heat recovery system that takes heat from its cement kilns and turns it into additional power for the plant. 

Between those two systems, the plant buys virtually no power from the grid during the day, a huge cost-saver in an era of rising electricity prices for businesses and everyday consumers alike. 

Examples like this are exactly why Michigan should take every opportunity to protect and build on the state’s strong clean energy policies. Amrize embarked on a singular effort to make its operations more sustainable, but policymakers should see it as a model for the future because cheap, clean energy will keep Michigan competitive internationally as a manufacturing powerhouse. 

Ceres is working in the state to fend off attacks on the 2023 Clean Energy and Jobs Act, the landmark policy driving Michigan towards 100% clean energy. Businesses in Michigan – including Amrize, New Belgium Brewing, Steelcase, Trane, and others -- want access to cheap wind, solar, and batteries to meet their own power needs and deliver more sustainable products to their customers. That’s why many major companies supported the law when it passed in 2023. 

Michigan policymakers also have opportunities to advance policies to optimize the state’s power grid and make it easier to build the transmission lines needed to transport clean power around the state. 

They should take a cue from Amrize, which is looking to continue down its sustainable path in Alpena. 

“We provide the most sustainable, highest quality products available to the market,” Scott told us. “And it’s incredibly important for us to continue to innovate and continue to work to build that so that our customers, our neighbors, our partners can all trust that we are the best company to work with.” 

American industry needs leadership like this, not just in Michigan, but around the country. Clean energy is usually the cheapest path to bringing new power online, and customers and trading partners around the world are increasingly demanding cleaner industrial products made with less planet-warming pollution. 

That is a massive opportunity for America, which is already a global leader in clean manufacturing. If companies and policymakers want to bring more manufacturing back to U.S. shores, it must be modern and powered by clean energy.