Saint-Gobain Denmark/Blue Phoenix press release February 16, 2026

Sand is an indispensable raw material in construction materials, but it is also one of the planet’s scarce resources. This is true in Denmark as well. That is why Saint-Gobain Weber, in collaboration with Blue Phoenix – formerly known as RGS Nordic – has taken matters into its own hands and established a partnership model. For Saint-Gobain Weber, this initially means launching products containing up to 30% recycled sand, with the potential to completely replace newly excavated sand from Danish gravel pits with recycled sand. This is particularly relevant in the production of mortars for bricklaying and post concrete at Saint-Gobain Weber, but the method can easily be transferred to other products that use sand as a raw material.

The formula is simple: Blue Phoenix has invested in a new soil-washing facility to clean uncontaminated surplus soil from municipal construction projects. The facility makes it possible to separate the soil and reuse materials such as stones and sand in new civil engineering projects or – as in Saint-Gobain Weber’s case – in the production of new building materials.
The result is sand of the same high quality as virgin sand from a gravel pit. There may be slight differences in color shades in the mortars, but this is a manageable challenge resolved by specialists in Saint-Gobain Weber’s color laboratory.

The recycled sand model also eliminates the need for heavy transport to and from gravel pits located far from Saint-Gobain Weber’s production facilities. This reduces pressure on existing and new gravel pits and the surrounding natural areas. Blue Phoenix’s soil-washing facility is located just 30 km from Saint-Gobain Weber’s factory in Karlstrup.

Construction projects should not be slowed down

According to figures from, among others, Niras, the Capital Region of Denmark will run out of sand in 2027, making it urgent to increase the share of recycled sand.
“It is the regions that issue excavation permits for gravel pits, and it is a well-known issue that sand and gravel will soon become scarce. As a result, excavation permits are already limited in the country’s gravel pits. But our industry cannot simply put construction cranes on hold,” says Peter Hedegaard, Director of Business Relations & Public Affairs at Saint-Gobain Denmark. He emphasizes: “Both we and other players in the construction industry need to meet the demand for materials for construction and renovation projects. Since there is currently no overarching plan for how to replace these scarce resources, we and other industry stakeholders must take action ourselves. By extracting raw materials from surplus soil, Blue Phoenix has developed a promising solution with great potential. We both protect the gravel pits, safeguard nature, and avoid importing sand, which is also a scarce resource in the rest of the world.”

Surplus soil is an overlooked resource

Blue Phoenix is Denmark’s largest processor of surplus soil, and according to Nicolai Søegaard, CEO of Blue Phoenix Denmark, it is a milestone that the company can now create recycling solutions for surplus soil of a quality capable of replacing virgin sand in industrial products.

“Surplus soil is the overlooked resource in the raw materials debate, and as Denmark’s largest processor of surplus soil, we are obligated to develop this type of solution. Soil washing is the obvious answer to both the limited disposal options for surplus soil and the future challenge of accessing raw materials for construction. In Denmark, we have always been fortunate to have abundant natural resources underground, which is why only in recent years have we begun extracting raw materials from surplus soil—a common method in several other European countries. In the coming years, we will see continued investments in increased capacity,” says Nicolai Søegaard.

Blue Phoenix’s facility has been operational since spring 2025, and through a partnership with Genjord A/S, the company will expand with another washing facility in early 2026 to increase capacity. More information about the facility and the process can be found at: denmark.blue-phoenix.com/overskudsjord/jordvask/

Circular production requires collaboration

The partnership model for using recycled sand in the production of building materials is the latest initiative by Saint-Gobain Denmark to manufacture construction materials with the highest possible share of recycled content. Other initiatives include the “Glass-to-Wool” model, in which developers and contractors collaborate with Saint-Gobain Isover in Vamdrup to ensure that glass from decommissioned windows in renovation projects is incorporated into the production of new glass wool. Isover glass wool is produced with up to 75 percent recycled glass, depending on availability. In addition, Saint-Gobain Isover operates take-back schemes in which surplus glass wool is returned to Isover for use in the production of new glass wool.

For further information and interviews:

Simon Leed Krøs, Senior Communications Advisor, Blue Phoenix.
Tlf. +45 3051 6140 / Email: simon.kroes@blue-phoenix.com