Displaying items by tag: Switzerland
Switzerland: Holcim’s full-year 2021 results show a 16% year-on-year rise in the group’s consolidated sales to US$28.3bn from US$24.4bn. Its recurring earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 26% to US$5bn from US$3.98bn. The group’s net debt also rose, by 18% to US$10.8bn from US$9.17bn.
CEO Jan Jenisch said “2021 was a record year for Holcim, reaching new levels of performance, across our financial and environmental social governance (ESG) targets. What makes me most proud is how we navigated the Covid-19 pandemic with such extraordinary resilience and agility, working tirelessly to keep our people and communities safe.” Jenisch continued “We delivered our Strategy 2022 one year in advance, setting solid foundations for our next era of growth. Putting sustainability at the core of our strategy, we accelerated the deployment of our green building solutions, from ECOPact green concrete and ECOPlanet green cement to smart roofing and energy efficiency systems. My sincere thanks goes to our 70,000 people who made all of this possible while keeping safety top of mind at all times.”
Holcim partners with Engie and National Institute of Applied Sciences Lyon to develop cement-based energy storage
03 February 2022Switzerland/France: Holcim is collaborating with Engie and and the French National Institute of Applied Sciences (INSA) Lyon to develop a cement-based energy storage technology to serve as an alternative to batteries. The solution will use cement hydration to store heat as energy and release it when needed in an infinitely repeatable cycle. The partners say that it will make energy storage local, safe, affordable and recyclable.
Holcim’s head of global innovation Edelio Bermejo said "The world needs innovative solutions to accelerate our shift towards renewable energy generation, distribution and storage – all areas in which Holcim can play a big part. With this collaboration, we are moving energy storage forward, opening up a new range of solutions based on materials that are local and recyclable."
Switzerland: Holcim has partnered with Bloomberg Media to launch the Circular Cities Barometer, an exploration of best circular economy practices from cities around the world. The platform aims to improve understandings of how to empower cities to become more circular. The partners will publish the Circular Cities Barometer’s first findings at the Bloomberg Green Summit in April 2022.
CEO Jan Jenisch said “Circularity is the opportunity of our time. It unlocks economic growth in a way that is climate-friendly, nature-positive and socially inclusive. My vision for construction is to build more new from the old with recycled materials in every new building.”
Holcim and Magment to develop magnetisable concrete technology for electric vehicle charging
06 January 2022Switzerland/Germany: Holcim has announced the launch of a strategic partnership with inductive charging technology developer Magment to test and commercialise magnetisable concrete technology for use in roads. The technology will power and charge electric vehicles as they drive on roads fitted with Magment. Another possible application is in industrial floors, to charge robots and forklifts.
Holcim’s Global Innovation Center head Edelio Bermejo said: “At Holcim we are innovating to put concrete at the centre of our world’s transition to net-zero. With Magment, we are excited to be developing concrete solutions to accelerate electric mobility. Partnering with start-ups all over the world, we are constantly pushing the boundaries of innovation to lead the way in sustainability.”
Holcim acquires Cowden
05 January 2022US: Holcim says that it has completed its acquisition of Washington-based ready-mix concrete and aggregates producer Cowden. The group said that the acquisition expands its footprint in the Pacific Northwest region.
Chief executive officer Jan Jenisch said “This acquisition is another step in our Strategy 2025 – Accelerating Green Growth plan to become the global leader in innovative and sustainable building solutions. We warmly welcome the more than 100 Cowden employees who join the Holcim family. With Cowden and its strong local roots we will strengthen our presence in this growing market and contribute to Holcim’s overall strategy to expand our range of low-carbon products and solutions.”
Holcim launches DYNAMax concrete
25 November 2021Switzerland: Holcim has launched the DYNAMax range of high-performance concretes. The producer says that the range offers higher compressive strength, rigidity and durability than its other concrete products. In 2022, it plans to begin marketing DYNAMax in ten markets in its Asia Pacific, Europe, Latin America and North America regions.
Chief executive officer Jan Jenisch said “I’m excited by the launch of our DYNAMax high-performance concrete, advancing our global range of innovative and sustainable building solutions. With today’s population and urbanisation trends, DYNAMax is an ideal material to build smarter cities. It offers high performance to build more with less with no compromise on aesthetics and functionality.”
Switzerland: Holcim has announced its support of Beton, the first Swiss exhibition dedicated to the history of concrete, at the Swiss Architecture Museum in Basel. The exhibition will run until 24 April 2022 and feature talks by an industry expert on the future of concrete.
Holcim chief executive officer Jan Jenisch said “I congratulate our partners at the Swiss Architecture Museum for creating this first-of-its-kind exhibition showcasing the essential role of concrete in our world. This exploration is a great inspiration for all of us at Holcim as we shape the future of concrete, making it green, circular and technology-driven. Throughout its history, concrete has been part of building progress in our world. Today we are reinventing it to make it work for people and the planet.”
Holcim launches Strategy 2025 – Accelerating Green Growth
18 November 2021Switzerland: Holcim has launched its Strategy 2025 – Accelerating Green Growth plan to become a global innovative and sustainable building solutions leader. Under the plan, the group will expand its solutions and products sales to account for 30% of consolidated sales by 2025. During the three-year period, it aims to deliver continuous group sales growth of 3 – 5% and over-proportional recurring earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBIT) growth on a like-for-like basis. It is also targeting a 10% return on invested capital (ROIC), cash conversion of 45% and leverage below 1.5x.
As part of the new strategy, the group will aim to recycle 75Mt of materials, including 10Mt of construction waste, in its products in 2022 – 2024. It aims to invest Euro476m in green capital expenditure (CAPEX) and link 40% of its financing agreements to its sustainable performance.
Chief executive officer Jan Jenisch said “We delivered what we promised with our Strategy 2022 one year in advance, setting strong foundations for our next era of growth. With our new level of performance, we have the firepower to invest in solutions and products to make it 30% of our company, while leading the way in green building solutions from ECOPact green concrete to energy-efficient roofing.” He added “With our Accelerating Green Growth strategy, we are ready to seize the opportunities ahead on our way to becoming the global leader in innovative and sustainable building solutions.”
Autonomous haulage in the cement sector
10 November 2021Volvo Autonomous Solutions and Holcim Switzerland announced this week that they are testing and developing the use of autonomous electric haulers in a limestone quarry. It’s a two-part project, as being able to run electric dump trucks will help Holcim to meet its sustainability goals by switching to renewable energy supplies. Automating the control of the trucks then lets Holcim work towards its digitisation targets as part of its ‘Plants of Tomorrow’ initiative. Holcim Switzerland has also been running a drone programme at the plant (see GCW520) and has been using a few electric concrete mixer trucks since early 2021.
The use of autonomous haulage systems (AHS) in quarries by the cement industry seems to mark the start of something new. As far as Global Cement Weekly can tell, the Volvo Autonomous Solutions - Holcim Switzerland project is the first one in the cement sector that has been announced publicly. Most of the examples of AHS to date have been for heavy mining applications such as iron ore, copper, oil sands and coal. Automation in limestone and aggregate extraction has been slower. One recent example in the aggregate sector was announced in late 2020 when Norway-based technology company Steer said it had signed a contract with Romarheim to supply three autonomous dump trucks for use in a stone quarry. Previously Steer has used its vehicles to clear unexploded ordinance for the Norwegian army.
AHS have been around commercially since the mid-2000s when Komatsu tested and then deployed one at a copper mine run by Codelco in Chile. By September 2021 Komatsu said it had commissioned over 400 trucks with its autonomous system and that these had hauled over 4Bnt of materials. For its part Caterpillar says it started its first automated vehicle research program in 1985 and was even testing a pair of Cat 773 dump trucks in the 1990s. However, it then took a pause before resuming after 2000 and starting its commercial projects in the 2010s. In April 2020 it hit 2Bnt of hauled materials by AHS using its MineStar Command product. Hitachi, Liebherr and Belaz have also been working on their own AHS products in conjunction with third party technology providers and these were developed later in the 2010s. Most of these products are complimentary control systems that have been added to existing models or can be added to new ones. Autonomous vehicle company ASI is the other big name in the field with its Mobius product. Unlike the other systems, this is purely a retrofit product. ASI does not make its own vehicles. Komatsu and Caterpillar have also developed retrofit kits for their systems.
Most of the products above look mostly like normal trucks with the addition of extra kit. Volvo and Scania have also been working on AHS but their products have been taking it further by removing the cab entirely. Scania launched its AXL product in September 2019. Volvo launched its Volvo Autonomous Solutions subsidiary in 2020 and its Tara system electric dump truck the same year. Volvo had previously planned to run a pilot for its Tara truck with Harsco Environmental carrying slag at the Ovako Steelworks in Hofors, Sweden. Unfortunately the pilot was disrupted by the start of the coronavirus pandemic shortly after it started.
It’s early days yet with the use of autonomous vehicles in the quarries of the cement and aggregates sectors. Obvious advantages are additional operational hours, better worker safety and reduced costs. As ever with automation, cutting out human jobs would be one disadvantage for the current workers at least. There is also the possibility that an experienced human driver using efficiency software tools might be better than a fully AHS. A challenge in the field is developing open standards or methods to allow autonomous machines to communicate or work with both products by the same manufacturer and its rivals, as well as with conventional human-driven ones. Another challenge is for the mining and quarrying industry to determine how flexible it wants its heavy vehicles to be. One thought to end with this that an autonomous vehicle with a cab and a steering wheel can still be driven by a human. The cab-less vehicles being tested by Volvo and Scania would be rather less useful if they get into a situation where the software can’t cope. Lots to consider.
If readers are aware of other examples AHS in the cement industry, please let us know at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Holcim commits to 40% sustainable financing by 2024
10 November 2021Switzerland: Holcim says it wants to reach at least 40% of sustainable financing by 2024. It intends to put climate action, water preservation and safety at the heart of its strategy to do this. The company has linked this commitment with the completion of two new sustainability-linked financing transactions worth above Euro2.8bn. It has also joined the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) Chief Financial Officers (CFO) Taskforce alongside 60 companies representing a combined US$1.7Tn in market capitalisation. The UNGC CFO Taskforce aligns members’ finance strategies with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).
Holcim’s CFO Géraldine Picaud said, “Sustainability is at the core of what we do. That's why we set ourselves some of the most ambitious goals in our industry. Walking the talk, we are putting climate, water and safety at the heart of our financing strategy. To make a bigger impact, I am delighted to be a member of the UNGC CFO Taskforce to move this agenda forward with my peers.”
In August 2021, Holcim refinanced a Euro3bn syndicated credit line linking it to climate and safety in line with the UN SDGs. The cost of the credit facility will depend on the company’s achievement of its annual targets in these areas. In September 2021, Holcim placed a new 10-year US$100m sustainability-linked bond, based on its 2030 CO2 reduction target. This issue represents its first private placement of a US Dollar medium-term note linked to climate action. The investor will be entitled to a higher coupon should the company not meet its climate objective. These actions follow the company’s Euro850m sustainability-linked bond issued in November 2020.