People

Mexico: The National Cement Chamber (CANACEM) has appointed Julio Cedeño as its General Director. He previously worked as the Director of Institutional Relations for the Camara Nacional de la Industria del Hierro y del Acero (CANCERO), an organisation representing the steel sector in Mexico. Cedeño is a graduate of the Universidad Iberoamericana in Political Science and Public Administration.

CANACEM represents the six cement companies in Mexico: Cementos Moctezuma, Cemento Cruz Azul, Cemex México, Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua, Holcim México and Cementos Fortaleza. 35 cement plants operate in the country producing nearly 47Mt/yr of cement and employing over 26,500 people. The organisation was originally founded in 1948.

India: Saurashtra Cement has appointed Pradeep Mehta as its chief financial officer (CFO). He will succeed Virendra Raj Mohnot in the post, who is retiring, with effect from 9 September 2024.

Mehta has worked in corporate finance roles for nearly 30 years most recently as the President-CFO of Garware High-Tech Films. He also worked as the CFO of Arihant Superstructures and has held finance positions with Mabati Rolling Mills, Jindal Steel and Power Global Ventures, Essar Steel, Jindal Power and Grasim industries. He holds an undergraduate degree in mathematics and is a registered chartered accountant.

Bangladesh: Bengal Cement has appointed Khandker Ataur Rahman Rifat as its chief operating officer. He has been working as the Group Chief Marketing Officer for Metrocem Group since 2019, according to the Business Standard newspaper. Prior to this Rifat, held roles with Hyundai Cement, Cemex, Meghna Group, LafargeHolcim Bangladesh and Aman Cement dating back to the mid-1990s. He holds a PhD in social science and business and a master of business administration qualification from the University of Dhaka.

Trinidad & Tobago: Trinidad Cement (TCL) has appointed Gonzalo Rueda Castillo as its General Manager and Roberto Adrian Villarreal Villarreal as its Group Strategic Planning Manager.

Rueda succeeds Guillermo Rojo de Diego as General Manager. As part of the role, Rueda will also oversee the operations of TCL’s business units in Trinidad, Barbados and Guyana. Rueda has over 25 years professional experience, and most recently held the position of Vice President – Commercial at Cemex Colombia.

Villarreal will replace Gustavo Alejandro Ruiz Silva as Group Strategic Planning Manager. Ruiz will take up another position within the Cemex Group. Villarreal has been domiciled in the Caribbean for approximately 10 years, and most recently held the position of General Manager with responsibility for the operations of TCL’s business units in Barbados and Guyana, namely, Arawak Cement Company Limited and TCL Guyana.

Saudi Arabia: Al Qura Cement has appointed Abdullah Abdulaziz Suleiman Alabdulatif as its chair. Saud Mahamed Ali Al Sabhan has been appointed as the Vice Chair. Both positions started in early July 2024 and will last until early July 2027.