September 2024
India: The India Cements has approved the transfer of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to an exclusively-owned subsidiary called Chennai Super Kings Cricket Ltd. The decision came following the previous statement made by The India Cements on 6 February 2015 regarding reorganisation proposals relating to the subsidiary.
The transfer comes after a judgment made by the Supreme Court in January 2015, in which the controversial clause in the Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) constitution that allowed members to have commercial interests in tournaments like the Indian Premier League (IPL) was struck down. As such, the BCCI's president N Srinivasan, who is also president of The India Cements, has been barred from contesting any polls of the board until he renounces the ownership of Chennai Super Kings.
The India Cements has completed the required documentation for the transfer and also informed the BSE that it would transfer its IPL team CSK to the new subsidiary, Chennai Super Kings Cricket Ltd (CSKC). After approving the demerger of CSK into a wholly-owned subsidiary of The India Cements on 26 September 2014, the board of directors had stated that the effective date of transfer will be 1 January 2015.
The first 21 coal blocks in India go up for auction 13 February 2015
India: JSW Energy, Reliance Cement and Ambuja Cement are among the 134 companies that have cleared the initial stages of coal auction for 21 blocks put up by the government. "Out of the 176 applications we received, 134 are found to be technically valid," said Coal secretary Anil Swarup.
The government had initially planned to auction 23 mines in the first round, but has put on hold bidding for two mines due to litigations. Of the 134 bids that are technically qualified, 12 are for the Gare Palma IV/7 coal mine in Chhattisgarh, making it the most sought after mine. Jaiprakash Associates and UltraTech Cement are among the 12 bidders. The Amelia (North) block and Bicharpur mines, both in Madhya Pradesh, have 10 bidders each.
Swarup said that the Ministry will go ahead with the auction of mines as per the schedule, though there have some court cases as a consequence of which there have been some changes. "Consequent to an interim order of the High Court, the auction of two mines has been put on hold. These are the Gotitoria East and Gotitoria West mines," said Swarup. The Coal Ministry had put both of the blocks in the unregulated sector, but the Court had directed that they should be considered for regulated sector.
Commissioning to start at new UK SRF facility 12 February 2015
UK: SITA UK has completed the construction of its Solid Recovered Fuel (SRF) manufacturing plant at Malpass Farm in Rugby, Warwickshire. The plant will undergo a series of commissioning tests over the next few months before starting full-scale production of Climafuel SRF. This will be used to power the kiln at the adjacent Cemex UK Rugby cement plant.
The residual waste material arriving at the site will primarily be collected from commercial and industrial businesses across the region that would otherwise go to landfill. Once received on site any metals, plastics and paper will be extracted for recycling. Similarly, materials with a high chlorine content, which could damage the kiln, will also be extracted. Any residual waste material that is removed from the production process will be processed into refuse derived fuel (RDF) for use in waste-to-energy applications.
To produce the SRF, the remaining material is sifted, shredded and blended while being continuously analysed using infrared technology. This allows the plant operators to ensure that the fuel, which has a confetti-like consistency after processing, has the precise chemical composition and calorific value required by Cemex UK.
SITA UK's Head of Alternative Fuels, Andy Hill, said, "The residual waste material that will be delivered to this facility would have gone to landfill but, instead, we are going to take out anything that can be recycled and then turn what's left into a replacement fuel."
"We have been producing this fuel very successfully at our sister plant at Landor Street in Birmingham for the past couple of years, but this new facility implements the latest technology and will substantially increase our production capacity," continued Hill. "Between the two plants, we'll be producing around 250,000t/yr of Climafuel."
SITA UK is currently also investing in new SRF manufacturing facilities at the Port of Tilbury in Essex, which are currently under construction. SITA UK currently supplies SRF to CEMEX UK and to CEMEX Latvia.
The India Cements slips into loss in the third quarter of 2015 12 February 2015
India: The India Cements Ltd has reported a net loss of US$1.87m for the quarter that ended on 31 December 2014 against a marginal profit of US$674 in the corresponding quarter of the previous year. Total income from operations stood at US$167m for the quarter, up marginally from US$166m in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.
Vice chairman and managing director N Srinivasan said that the increased net plant realisation helped it to offset the cost increase and drop in sales volume. Consequently, earnings before interest, depreciation, tax and amortisation (EBIDTA) improved to US$26.2m compared to US$23.4m during the same period of the prior year quarter. Srinivasan said that cement demand in the south of India had been almost flat. In this context, he pointed to capacity utilisation, which stood at 56% in the third quarter of 2015, as against 63% in the same quarter of the previous year.
The board of directors of The India Cements also reappointed Rupa Gurunath as wholetime director for a further five years with effect from 5 March 2015, subject to necessary approvals.
Semen Baturaja’s sales down by 9.7% in January 2015 12 February 2015
Indonesia: State-owned PT Semen Baturaja Tbk has reported a 9.7% decline in sales volumes from 100,603t in January 2014 to 90,764t in January 2015. Zulfikri Subli, corporate secretary of Semen Baturaja, said that the decline is due to increased rainfall and weakening commodity prices, which resulted in property and infrastructure developments being delayed. "Until the end of January 2015, we managed to sell 90,764t valued at US$6.85m," said Subli.
However, Semen Baturaja expects sales volumes to rise in the following months, bringing total sales in 2015 to 1.75Mt and total revenues to US$133m. The company's performance in 2014 was equal with that in 2013, with sales volume of 1.26Mt.
Semen Baturaja is seeking external financing of US$58.7m from the issuance of bonds or bank loans to finance the construction of the Semen Baturaja II plant with a total investment requirement of US$260m.
Sumanta Pandit appointed new CEO of Holcim Cement (Bangladesh) Ltd 12 February 2015
Bangladesh: Sumanta Pandit has been appointed as CEO of Holcim Cement (Bangladesh) Ltd. Pandit joins Holcim Bangladesh from Emirates Cement, a subsidiary of UltraTech India, where he was heading the business in Bangladesh as country manager.
Prior to this, Pandit worked for various multinational cement companies in different management positions. During his long career in the cement industry, Pandit has worked in Switzerland, Oman, Kuwait, Sri Lanka and Sudan. With 22 years of exposure in the industry, he brings with him considerable regional and international experience. He holds an honours degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Mumbai.
Italy's Cementir raises EBIT by 36% in 2014 11 February 2015
Italy: In its initial results statement, Cementir Holding SpA has reported earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) of Euro104m in 2014, up by 35.7% annually. Revenues dropped by 4.1% to Euro948m, mostly due to the appreciation of major currencies against the Euro.
During the entire of 2014, earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 13.4% to Euro192m, as non-recurring items of some Euro12m pushed the result up. EBITDA margin grew to 20.3% in 2014, up from 17.2% in 2013. Cementir's net debt dropped to Euro278m at the end of 2014 from Euro325m at the end of 2013, thanks to positive operating cash flow.
Cementir's operating results in 2014 beat its own targets, due to efficiency improvement efforts, according to chairman and CEO Francesco Caltagirone Jr. In its outlook for 2015, Cementir expects to post EBITDA of some Euro190m and have its net debt at around Euro230m at the end of the year. It expects to raise its sales of both cement and ready-mix concrete, to increase the proceeds from waste treatment in Turkey and the UK and to achieve efficiency savings on energy costs.
Vulcan Materials’ profit soars on higher aggregates sales 11 February 2015
US: Vulcan Materials' 2014 fourth quarter earnings surged on continued growth in aggregates shipments and stronger average selling prices. The company has also been expanding through a string of deals. Vulcan reported that it spent US$322m for bolt-on acquisitions during 2014.
"Strong momentum in the latest quarter bodes well for 2015, a year in which we expect a continued recovery in demand for our products and, importantly, an improving pricing and margin environment," said Chief executive Tom Hill. "Although aggregates demand remains well below normal levels, this steady and gradual improvement is a further indication of construction activity recovery," said Hill.
Vulcan reported a profit of US$38m in the fourth quarter of 2014, up from US$9.1m in the same period of 2013. Revenue during the period increased by 11% to US$755m. Vulcan said that the latest results benefited by around US$7m as the result of lower diesel fuel costs, mostly in its aggregates business.
Buzzi Unicem cement sales flat in 2014 11 February 2015
Italy: Buzzi Unicem has reported sales of Euro2.50bn in 2015, a slight decrease from Euro2.51 in 2014. Buzzi Unicem's sales rose in the United States and the Czech Republic, grew slightly in central Europe, were flat in Russia and continued to drop in Italy and Poland, according to a preliminary financial statement for 2014.
The Italian cement producer's net debt dropped by Euro34m to Euro1.06bn in 2014 due to cash flow from operations, disposal of non-strategic assets and a careful dividend policy. The group expects its recurring earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) in 2014 to have risen to slightly over Euro400m, in line with previous guidance.
Buzzi Unicem's board of directors are called to approve the consolidated audited 2014 profit and loss statement on 27 March 2015.
Cement ball mill to become Kandos museum exhibit 11 February 2015
Australia: The Kandos Bicentennial Industrial Museum has moved a ball mill from the former Cement Australia Kandos plant to its collection. The aim is to make the mill the centre of the museum's external collection, according to local press.
"We were very lucky to be offered the ball mill by Cement Australia," said Dr Buzz Sanderson, president of the Kandos Museum. "When Cement Australia decided to demolish the Kandos Cement Works, it asked us which parts we wanted to exhibit at the museum and the ball mill was one of them. There was a plan at one stage to place the ball mill down near the railway station at the entrance to town but there were just too many safety concerns."
The ball mill will be placed beside the Kandos Museum to give visitors to the museum a sense of how the machinery worked when it was in operation. The museum has had three sections cut away from the machine that will allow guests to look inside and see the inner workings of the machine.