US: An updated version of the Clean Competition Act (CCA) has been reintroduced to the 119th US Congress in December 2025. The legislation proposes levying a tax of US$60/t of CO₂ equivalent emissions associated with selected carbon-intensive goods, according to the American Action Forum (AAF). This would then be increased by 6% each year along with a carbon border adjustment of import taxes and export rebates. It would cover goods including cement, oil, gas, coal, refining, petrochemicals, fertilisers, hydrogen, adipic acid, iron and steel, aluminium, glass, pulp and paper and ethanol. The CCA is not expected to become law in the short-term. However, the AAF reckons that it provides a, “a meaningful framework for a US legislative approach to encouraging decarbonization in the US and abroad.”

India: Shree Cement has announced plans to invest US$223m in a new 2Mt/yr cement plant in Maharashtra’s Vidarbha region, as part of its three-year strategy to boost overall cement capacity from 68Mt/yr to 80Mt/yr. Chair Hari Bangur said the proposed plant will be located in Kondala, Chandrapur district. A letter of intent was signed in the presence of Maharashtra’s Chief Minister, Devendra Fadnavis.

“Land is almost taken, terms of reference have come, now environmental clearance is awaited. After environmental clearance, it is a matter of two years before the whole plant is there,” said Bangur.

The company already operates a grinding unit in Pune. While Shree Cement has not disclosed other specific locations for future plants, Bangur said land acquisition is underway and ‘plans are in place.’ After achieving 80Mt/yr capacity by 2028, the company reportedly aims to expand further to 100Mt/yr. The new plant will be funded entirely through internal accruals. Bangur stated that Shree Cement has over US$557m in cash reserves and will not require external borrowing for the project.

Saudi Arabia: Riyadh Cement has signed an engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract with a value of around US$23m with China-based Chengdu Design and Research Institute. The agreement covers the construction of an electrical grid station to complete the electricity supply project for Riyadh Cement’s Nisah plant. The deal falls under the Liquid Fuel Displacement program. The project is intended to boost energy efficiency, cut emissions, and improve operational reliability.

Ivory Coast: The Association of Cement Producers of Cote d'Ivoire (APCCI) has called for stricter quality control in the cement industry. During an industry stakeholders panel discussion held in mid-December 2025 APCCI Vice President Ivan Zarka said that the association aims to guarantee the protection of consumers by ensuring the availability of compliant cement, according to the Agence Ivoirienne de Presse. He blamed building collapses in recent years on design flaws or poor quality concrete formulations. He lobbied for strict adherence to CODINORM (Côte d'Ivoire Normalisation) standards and improved monitoring of formulations.

Nagolo Soro, the Deputy Director General of the Abidjan Cement Company, said that the quality of cement produced in the country is ‘generally under control,’ while emphasising the need for continuous improvement of laboratory equipment. He also suggested strengthening the role of the LBTP (Laboratory of Building and Public Works) as the national reference laboratory.

The APCCI also encouraged further use of cement in applications such as concrete road construction. The country currently produces 21Mt/yr of cement but only uses an estimated 7Mt/yr.