September 2024
CG Cement to build integrated plant in Sri Lanka 30 July 2019
Sri Lanka: Binod Chaudhary, the owner of CG Cement, says his company plans to invest US$150m towards building a new integrated cement plant. He said that he had approval from the government and had identified several potential limestone deposits to support the project, according to the Daily News newspaper. The company intends to export cement and clinker.
CG Cement operates a grinding plant at Dumbikas, Nawalparasi district. It says it has a 10% market share.
Saudi Arabia exports 25Mt of cement since mid-2017 30 July 2019
Saudi Arabia: Total exports of cement have reached 25Mt since the export rules were relaxed in mid-2017. Abdul Rahman Hussein, from the Ministry of Trade and Investment, said that the government is now planning to charge fees on exporters after a two-year tax holiday, according to the Aliqtisadia newspaper. He noted that the ministry has approved 53 cement export licences. 22 of these have been issued during the current year.
Belgium: Australia’s Calix says the Low Emissions Intensity Lime And Cement (LEILAC) consortium has successfully demonstrated CO2 separation with more than 95% purity at its pilot unit at HeidelbergCement’s cement plant in Lixhe. Technology provider Calix said that preliminary test runs have been completed on the pilot. The technology concept has been shown to work on both lime and cement meal, with calcination near to target levels and high purity CO2 successfully separated at the top of the reactor although not yet at full design capacity.
It added that it was still working on fixing commissioning issues. Testing will run until the end of 2020 to assess the risk of potential longer-term issues such as tube health and process robustness. In parallel, planning has commenced on the next scale-up of the technology, including conceptual design and engaging funding consortia.
Panama: Ramón Martínez, the Minister of Trade and Industry, has signed two resolutions intended to improve the requirements and standards of cement quality both domestically and for imports. DGNTI-COPANIT 5-2019 sets out the chemical, physical and performance requirements of general and specialised cements, as well as the packaging, transportation, storage and use requirements, according to La Estrella newspaper. DGNTI-COPANIT-90-2019 specifies the procedure for verifying and monitoring the quality of hydraulic cements produced, imported and marketed in the country.
Spain: FYM-HeidelbergCement has launches a new clinker conveyor at the Port of Malaga. The new Euro2.5m project started by loading 4800t of clinker onto a ship bound for Ireland. The conveyor will continue to be tested in August 2019 with 30,000DWT and 40,000DWT vessels. The enclosed conveyor has a load capacity of 650t/hr. the project also included setting up two storage areas in the Pescadería area of the city.
Asia Cement appeals quarry permit block 30 July 2019
Taiwan: Asia Cement has appealed a ruling by the High Administrative Court in Taipei to revoke an extension of its mining rights at a quarry in Xincheng Township. Its right to operate the quarry was blocked in early July 2019 despite a 20-year extension granted in 2017, according to the Taipei Times newspaper. The cement producer also said it had received signatures from local residents will support continued mining at the site. The quarry supports an integrated plant at Huanlien.
Schmersal Group opens new branch in Dubai 30 July 2019
UAE: Germany’s Schmersal Group has set up a new subsidiary ‘Schmersal Middle East-FZE’ to focus on business in the Middle East. The new company has opened an office in Dubai to support its development in the region. Uwe Seeger, Director of Asia Pacific Middle East at Schmersal Group said that he expected ‘great potential’ from the area.
Schmersal Group builds switchgears for the protection of machines and plants in industrial automation and lift industry. It is represented with its own corporations and distribution partners in over 60 countries.
UK: The Global Cement and Concrete Association (GGCA) has launched a photography competition to showcase the role of concrete in the world. The contest has three categories and is open to both professional and amateur photographers. A top price of US$10,000 is on offer for the winning entry.
Turkey drags on Cementir’s half-year results 29 July 2019
Italy: Cementir Holding has blamed poor performance in Turkey for falling cement sales volumes. Although it said that positive trends in Scandinavia, the Baltics and Belgium had party compensated for this. Its sales volumes of grey and white cement fell by 12.2% year-on-year to 4.32Mt in the first half of 2019 from 4.92Mt in the same period in 2018. Ready-mixed concrete sales dropped by 21.3% to 2Mm3 from 2.54Mm3. Its revenue rose slightly by 0.6% to Euro592m from Euro589m. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) grew by 14.7% to Euro110m from Euro96m.
CCNN’s sales rise to US$89.1m in first half of 2019 29 July 2019
Nigeria: Cement Company of Northern Nigeria’s (CCNN) sales revenue more than doubled to US$89.1m in the first half of 2019 from US$33.6m in the same period in 2018. Its profit after tax nearly tripled to US$20.3m from US$7.22m, according to the Business Day newspaper.