Displaying items by tag: Government
Cemex to convert Gádor cement plant site for renewables, waste recycling and concrete
11 January 2019Spain: Cemex has signed a Euro117m deal with the local government to convert the land used by the Gádor cement plant in Almeria for use by new projects. These will include projects in solar and wind power generation, waste fuel production from plastics and biomass and a new concrete batching plant, according to Teleprensa. The initiative is intended to create around 400 jobs.
The cement producer has also signed a similar agreement for its Lloseta in Baleares. The company announced in mid-October 2018 that it was planning to close the two plants due to reduced demand for cement and mounting European CO2 emissions regulations.
Government approves two new lines at Thanh Thang Cement plant
10 January 2019Vietnam: Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has allowed Thanh Thang Cement to add two new production lines to its plant at Thanh Nghi in Ha Nam. Lines 4 and 5 will have a combined production capacity of 2.3Mt/yr, according Viet Nam News newspaper. Line 4 is expected to be commissioned in 2022 and line 5 in 2026. The cost of the upgrade has been disclosed.
Chhatak Cement to spend US$106m on upgrade
09 January 2019Bangladesh: Chhatak Cement plans to spend US$106m on building a new dry production line at its plant near Dhaka. The project is scheduled to be completed by 2021, according to the Financial Express newspaper. The subsidiary of the Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) plans to finance the upgrade with a US$63m loan from the government. The plant is currently using equipment that is up to 80 years old. At present it has a production capacity of 70,000t/yr despite upgrades in the 1980s and 2000.
India: UltraTech Cement and local truck companies have ended a dispute over the size of payloads in Himachal Pradesh after mediation from the state government. The disagreement over increasing the size of truckloads to 12t started in late December 2018, according to the United News of India agency.
Central Pollution Control Board orders Malabar Cements to comply with emissions standards
07 January 2019India: The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has ordered Malabar Cements plant at Walayar, Palakkad in Kerala to comply with emissions standards or face closure. The cement producer has been given seven days to comply from the 31 December 2018, according to the Times of India newspaper. Malabar Cements was originally granted extra time, to 10 May 2018, to meet the new standards. The CPCB later declared that no cement producer would be able to flout the rules past 31 August 2018. It also intends to fine the company around US$570/day from the end of August 2018 for breaking the standards.
Ministry finds irregularities in accounts of Burnpur Cement
04 January 2019India: A probe by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has found ‘serious’ financial irregularities in the accounts of Burnpur Cement. The regional director of the MCA has recommended an investigation of the company, according to the Business Standard newspaper. The MCA has also recommended that the cement producer be barred from making interest payments without government permissions in the interest of its shareholders. The company was reported as a non-performing asset in 2016 and its repayment schedule to lenders has been monitored in the media. It made a loss of around US$15m in the financial year that ended in March 2018.
Philippine Cement Importers Association says prices may rise if tariffs are introduced
03 January 2019Philippines: Napoleon Co, the president of the Philippine Cement Importers Association (PCIA), says that the introduction of tariffs on cement imports may lead to higher prices. He said that if new tariffs were started some importers would cease operating, according to the Manila Standard newspaper. He then argued that local producers might raise their prices to match the higher cost of imported cement. Co made the comment in response to an on-going investigation into tariffs being run by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). Several importers allegedly stopped imported cement after the DTI launched the investigation in September 2018.
Vietnam exports 31.7Mt of cement in 2018
03 January 2019Vietnam: Data from the Vietnam Cement Association (VNCA) shows that the country’s export volumes of cement rose by 55% year-on-year to 31.7Mt in 2018. Producers generated an estimated US$1.2bn from exports, according to the Viet Nam News newspaper. The VNCA’s Chairman Nguyen Quang Cung attributed growing exports to decreased production in China, where production lines have been closed due to pollution.
The Ministry of Construction has attributed growing exports to better performance in the construction sector. Domestic cement consumption grew by 9% to 65.1Mt in 2018. It estimates that consumption will rise by up to 8% in 2019 to around 99Mt, comprising 69Mt for the local market and 30Mt for export. The main export markets in 2019 are expected to be the Philippines, Bangladesh, China, Taiwan and Peru.
Japan: Taiheiyo Cement says it has started the country’s first carbon capture and storage (CCS) test at its Fujiwara plant in Inabe, in conjunction with the Ministry of Environment. It is testing a chemical absorption method on kiln exhaust gases at the plant. Further installations on the project will continue during January 2019.
Architecture and Construction Ministry supports Belorussian use of commodity exchange
02 January 2019Belarus: The Architecture and Construction Ministry has supported the country’s use of a commodity exchange to sell cement. Deputy Architecture and Construction Minister Alexander Sidorov said that his ministry was prepared to support an increase in supply to the exchange if demand allowed, according to the Belarusian Telegraph Agency (BelTA). It was previously announced that the country was planning to make 0.2Mt/yr of 10% of the country’s cement exports available to purchase via the Belarusian Universal Commodity Exchange (BUCE) from the start of 2019.