Cement industry is one of the most energy intensive industrial sub-sectors. It accounts for almost 15% of the total energy consumed by manufacturing. Numerous energy efficiency initiatives and measures have been introduced and employed in this industry. To implement the most appropriate solutions for a certain cement plant, both technological and non-technological constraints need to be considered. To date, researchers have focused on outcomes such as energy savings, investment and emission reduction and therefore, both qualitative criteria and current circumstances of the plant have been largely overlooked. In this study, an integrated 3-phase model is presented to address these shortcomings and assist the plant managers to select and invest in the most suitable projects. The proposed tool, which is founded on a multi-criteria decision model, will assist the cement managers in achieving their energy saving targets. The tool is tested for 3 cases showing its applicability with real data resulting in the ranked list of opportunities for each of the plants. •Cement accounts for 83% of total energy use in the production of non-metallic minerals and 94% of CO2 emissions.•Both financial and technical aspects need to be taken into account to determine the energy conservation opportunities.•A decision making model is designed and developed to assist selection of energy efficiency measures.