Displaying items by tag: Aggregates

Spain: FYM has agreed to sell its Southern Spain business to Brazil-based Votorantim Cimentos. The assets consist of the 1.6Mt/yr Málaga cement plant and 11 ready-mixed concrete plants and aggregates assets in Andalusia. Parent company HeidelbergCement said that the divestments accord with it Beyond 2020 strategic vision. FYM retains its Northern Spain cluster in the Basque Country, Cantabria, La Rioja and Navarra, which it operates under the Cementos Rezola brand.

Australia: Boral plans to run a pilot scale carbon capture and storage unit at its integrated Berrima Cement plant in New South Wales. The project follows an allocation of a US$1.7m grant from the Australian Government’s carbon capture and utilisation and storage (CCUS) Development Fund in June 2021. The pilot intends to develop and test a re-carbonation strategy for CO₂ storage. Captured CO₂ will be stored in recycled concrete, masonry and steel slag aggregates. In its 2021 sustainability report, the buildings materials company said that, “The relatively low capital and operation costs, abundance of selected waste materials and the financial return potential due to the increased value of processed aggregates are key drivers for adoption of this technology.”

Poland/US: Holcim has announced two new acquisitions in the area of raw materials and aggregates. In Poland, it has acquired granulated calcium carbonate producer Polcalc. The company employs 78 people. In the US, the group has acquired Utah-baed Utelite. The company produces lightweight aggregates and employs 40 people.

CEO Jan Jenisch said “We are pleased to welcome the employees of Utelite and Polcalc and look forward to their experience and capabilities. These two bolt-on acquisitions strengthen our presence in two important growth markets while contributing to Holcim’s overall strategy to expand our range of low-carbon products and solutions.”

UK: Hanson has delivered 171,000t of cement to the site of the upcoming Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant in Somerset. It has also delivered 1Mm³ of ready-mix concrete via the customer’s on-site batching plants, 5Mt of aggregates and 443,000t of sand. Its Port Talbot site in Neath Port Talbot has supplied 230,000t of Regen ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) for use in concrete production, reducing the product’s carbon footprint by a total of 200,000t compared with concrete produced using ordinary Portland cement (OPC) only.

Australia: Researchers from Murdoch University in Western Australia have developed a cement-free concrete called Colliecrete. ABC News has reported that the concrete comprises of 80 – 90% fly ash. Other ingredients are bauxite residue and recycled aggregates. Developer Ramon Skane said that customers can make Colliecrete ‘anywhere, at room temperature.’

France: Lafarge France has awarded a contract to Germany-based Inform for the supply of its transport optimisation software across its 160 aggregates locations and 900-truck fleet. The software uses algorithms to analyse scheduling decisions in real-time and identify those that are ideal for minimising costs and maximising service and on-time performance.

Supply chain projects head Kevin Perrault said “We have been using Inform’s transport optimisation software for over 25 years in our aggregates business.” He added “We pride ourselves in delivering the best possible service to our customers, and upgrading our operations to the latest version is a key element to help us achieve our goals and to remain competitive in the industry.”

UK: Finland-based Metso Outotec has awarded a contract to Duo Group to provide distribution services for its British aggregates equipment and services business. Under the terms of the contract, Duo Group will deliver the supplier’s products and provide technical support to its quarry customers in England, Scotland and Wales. Metso Outotec presently provides both services itself. The contract will enter force in September 2021.

Distribution management senior vice president Olli-Pekka Oksanen said “We are very pleased to announce the partnership with Duo. The partnership expands our distribution model to include the larger aggregates quarrying customers in the UK. With Duo’s local presence and world class know-how, we will improve our ability to offer more comprehensive aggregate solutions and aftermarket support with the agility and responsiveness appreciated by the quarrying customers.”

US: Cemex USA has announced plans for an upcoming 600,000t/yr aggregates plant in Brierfield, Alabama. The Birmingham Business Journal newspaper has reported that, when operational, the plant will supply the company’s ready-mix concrete operations in the state. The subsidiary of Mexico-based Cemex operates 30 batching plants in Alabaster, Tuscaloosa and Vance.

Mid-South regional president Marc Tyson said “The Brierfield plant gives us a new opportunity to support our existing customers and earn the business of new ones by leveraging the wealth of experience of our team and providing them materials sourced from all parts of Cemex USA's supply chain.”

Germany: The Federal Cartel Office has approved the takeover of Heinrich Teufel by Holcim Deutschland. The subsidiary of Switzerland-based Holcim said it had agreed to acquire the ready-mix concrete and aggregates in July 2021. The purchase is intended to increase the company’s presence in southern Germany.

US: Hanson Aggregates has purchased 577ha of land near Buckeye, Arizona. The Phoenix Business Journal newspaper has reported that the company will use the land to produce ready-mix concrete and rock products and. Martin Marietta Materials agreed to acquire Germany-based HeidelbergCement’s US West regional business, which included Hanson Aggregates, in May 2021 for US$2.3bn.