On 19 June 2026, Iran and the US are due to conclude a peace and reopen shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. This may avert an ‘unprecedented’ global energy shock; the weeks of war since 28 February 2026 and an uncertain future hardly preclude it as a possibility, however.1, 2 Having a diverse energy mix is a possible antidote – if so, most countries are behind on their ‘jabs.’
In Pakistan, Pioneer Cement approved plans for a new 28.3MW solar power plant at its 2Mt/yr Chenki, Punjab, cement plant on 16 June 2026. The project is scheduled for commissioning later in 2026. Pakistan Business News has reported that the company will finance the Chenki solar power plant’s construction from internal cash generation. Its stated aim: to ‘generate substantial savings on electricity.’ This in a region formerly reliant on imported coal, primarily from Afghanistan. An on-going conflict between Afghanistan and Pakistan reignited on 26 February 2026, leaving Punjabi cement producers with a widening energy gap. At the same time as Pakistan’s energy consumption is declining, Pioneer Cement is joining a solar power capacity-building revolution set to presently exceed daytime grid demand in ‘several industrial centres.’
Two Indian cement producers – The India Cements and parent company UltraTech Cement – concluded energy supply agreements for a total 29.7MW of wind power from wind farm developer and operator Fourth Partner Energy on 11 June 2026. The provider will supply UltraTech Cement with 15.7MW and The India Cements with 14MW of renewable power from its upcoming 75MW Karur wind farm in Tamil Nadu. The Global Cement Directory 2026 lists the India Cements’ 0.9Mt/yr Sankari cement plant in Salem district and UltraTech Cement’s Karur grinding plant as the nearest relevant cement facilities.
Energy India News has reported that other recent deals concluded by UltraTech Cement to diversify its energy supply include a 45MW captive solar power plant in Odisha with AMPIN Energy Transition and another 21MW one in Maharashtra with Sunsure Energy. In each instance, the group also acquired a stake in the respective energy partner. In the case of Fourth Partner Energy, UltraTech Cement will also acquire a 14% stake in its subsidiary FPEL Services for US$1.34m, while The India Cements will acquire 12.5% for US$1.13m.
UltraTech Cement is also in the process of decoupling its logistics from fossil fuels. On 16 June 2026, it deployed a new fleet of 45 55t-capacity electric heavy-goods vehicles into its clinker transport operations at its 4.9Mt/yr Kotputli cement plant in Rajasthan. The vehicles will supply clinker over distances of 250km to the company’s Dadri and Sikandarabad grinding plants in Delhi-National Capital Region. As a result, UltraTech Cement expects to reduce CO₂ emissions by 8900t/yr.
At the start of June 2026, Vicat announced a US$8.7m investment in electrification at its 1Mt/yr Xeuilley cement plant in France. US-based Noc Energy will electrify the preheating process in a crusher at the plant. Vicat expects this to eliminate 12,000t/yr of CO₂ emissions. The project has funding from the French Agency for Ecological Transition.
Finland-based Wärtsilä announced that it has won a contract for a fuel conversion project at a captive power plant belonging to Arabian Cement Company’s Jordanian subsidiary Qatrana Cement Company (QCC) on 17 June 2026. The plant, situated at QCC’s 1.6Mt/yr Karak cement plant, will switch over to natural gas, in order to reduce CO₂ emissions and operating costs. Wärtsilä has delivered multiple previous projects in Jordan and has been working with QCC since 2008.
In no less a petro-giant than Saudi Arabia, preparations are underway at Al Jouf Cement’s 3.5Mt/yr Turaif cement plant in Northern Borders province for connection to the national grid by early 2027, removing the need for captive generators. US-based Altec will carry out a US$7.43m design, supply and installation contract covering electrical interconnections. The project advances the Saudi Arabian government’s Liquid Fuel Displacement Programme oil-decoupling strategy.
In Spain, energy represents around 30% of operating expenditure across the cement industry, up from 21% since an April 2025 blackout and resulting reforms to energy bills. This corresponds to an additional US$104m in costs over the 14 months since. In an interview with the El Economista newspaper on 16 June 2026, industry association Oficemen CEO Elena Guede Vazquez called on the government to enact further support for Spain’s most energy-intensive companies. The cement sector has suffered the two-pronged effects of the Iran War – both in increased costs and loss of sales amidst housing and infrastructure project delays due to the same reasons. The National Confederation of Construction Industry (CNC) calculated a minimum rise in costs of 15% for its members nationally. A US$5.6bn package of new renewables funding and fossil fuels tax exemptions helped ease the pressure on 22 March 2026. Oficemen members are simultaneously working to increase their efficiency and reduce their energy consumption.
Tunisia’s Carthage Cement, which operates the 2Mt/yr Djebel Ressas cement plant in Ben Arous governorate, published its 2025 Sustainability Report on 11 June 2026. The company’s total energy consumption dropped by 12% year-on-year, to 5,300,000GJ. Specifically, its consumption of electricity contributed a 9% decline, to 588,000GJ – 11% of total energy consumption.
On 16 June 2026, China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) launched a campaign to retrofit plants across nine key industries, including cement. The campaign aims to increase the share of clinker production capacity operating at efficiency benchmark levels from around 30% to around 50% by 2028. Along with other industries, this will eliminate a cumulative 200Mt of CO₂ emissions and the equivalent of 100Mt of coal consumption. The NDRC will finance 20% of the retrofit bill for eligible plants, besides additional tax incentives and ‘diversified financial products.’
Xiamen University China Institute for Studies in Energy Policy chair Lin Boqiang told the Global Times newspaper that the intention behind the campaign is emissions reduction, not energy conservation; the effect is the same. With the price gap between coal and renewables ‘gradually’ diminishing, Lin said that rising costs and policy pressure together will ‘force more energy-intensive industries to accelerate their transition to clean energy.’
From industrial heat to the humble combustion engine, cement producers are stripping out the infrastructure of the age of gas, coal, coke and diesel, and replacing it with circuitry, batteries and (increasingly) renewably-powered generators. Within the coalition driving the changes are a prominent minority of US-based start-ups, sharing their expertise in markets where investment conditions are right.
References
BBC News, ‘US and Iran agree deal to end war as Trump says Strait of Hormuz to reopen,’ 15 June 2026, www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c39yvvy273ko
2 Novinite.com, ‘IEA Warns Iran War Could Trigger Unprecedented Energy Crisis,’ 23 March 2026, www.novinite.com/articles/237630/%E2%80%9CTwo+Oil+Crises+and+a+Gas+Crash%E2%80%9D+-+IEA+Warns+Iran+War+Could+Trigger+Unprecedented+Energy+Crisis
