OBPS calculator for cement & lime
Calculate your cement & lime facility's annual Output-Based Pricing System obligation against the federal performance standard of 0.84 tCO₂e per t clinker. Updated for the May 2026 carbon price schedule.
Performance standard is set per tonne of clinker produced (not finished cement). Cement grinders without clinker kilns are exempt from this specific benchmark.
You earn 15,000 tCO₂e in OBPS credits (surplus at the standard).
Annual obligation = (actual emissions − production × sector standard) × $95/tCO₂e. A positive number is cash you owe; a negative number is surplus credits you can bank or sell.
OBPS calculators for other Ontario sectors
Common questions
What is the OBPS performance standard for cement & lime?
The federal OBPS performance standard for cement & lime producers is 0.84 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent per t clinker of production. This benchmark, set under ECCC's Output-Based Pricing System Regulations (SOR/2019-313), defines the emissions intensity below which a facility earns credits and above which it must remit payment at the federal carbon price.
How does the OBPS work for cement & lime facilities in Ontario?
Also covering portland cement, clinker production, lime manufacturing, concrete. A facility reports its annual production in t clinker and its total covered emissions in tCO₂e. The OBPS multiplies production by 0.84 to determine "allowed" emissions. The difference between actual and allowed emissions is multiplied by the federal carbon price for the compliance year. A positive result means the facility owes; a negative result means it earned OBPS credits.
How does the May 2026 carbon price freeze affect my cement & lime facility?
The federal carbon price for industrial emissions (including OBPS) was held flat at $95/tCO₂e in 2026 (no increase from 2025), under the May 15, 2026 federal-Alberta agreement. The price rises to $100/t for 2027–2029, $115/t by 2030, and reaches $130/t by 2035. Facilities below the cement & lime standard can sell surplus credits; facilities above the standard can buy credits from a registry.
Do small cement & lime facilities have to participate in OBPS?
OBPS applies to facilities emitting 50,000 tCO₂e or more per year. Smaller cement & lime facilities may still face federal carbon pricing through the fuel charge (where applicable) or provincial programs. Verify your facility's threshold with ECCC's OBPS facility-level reporting guidance.
Where can I get primary-data carbon accounting for cement & lime?
VantageHSG ingests real facility documents — MTCs (mill test certificates), fuel slips, LIMS exports, SAP extracts — and turns them into audit-ready carbon ledgers with full source lineage. The mass-balance methodology lets cement & lime producers substantiate Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions directly from primary data, which is more defensible than EEIO spend-based estimates.