Displaying items by tag: GCW571

Australia: Boral has posted a slump in its annual profit, which fell by a third year-on-year for the 12 months to 30 June 2022. It made a profit of US$73.7m, down from US$98m in the 12 months to 30 June 2021

The company said that the result had been impacted by rising energy and haulage costs, while severe rains in eastern Australia at the start of 2022 had forced temporary stoppages to numerous construction projects. The company withheld profit guidance in its announcement, saying only that it expected revenue to be higher in the 2023 fiscal year as a result of annual price increases and new freight charges for customers.

Mexico: A group of approximately 400 former workers of Cooperativa la Cruz Azul, who maintain possession of the Tula cement plant in Hidalgo, staged a demonstration on 22 August 2022 in front of the offices of the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) demanding that power to the plant be reinstated.

Through a press release, the CFE said that it had met with some of the protesters. After negotiations, it concluded that the reconnection of the plant "will be made as soon as notification is received from the court or competent authority."

Local reports have suggested that the cut was ordered on 17 August 2022 by Víctor Manuel Velázquez Rangel, who heads the Board of Directors of the Cooperativa la Cruz Azul, the legal owner of the plant. The justification was that the plant has become dangerous to operate after two years of occupation by the protestors.

US: Summit Materials has announced that its cement plant in Hannibal, Missouri, has been converted to produce 100% Portland limestone cement (PLC). Since 4 August 2022, the plant has only produced PLC, which has embodied CO₂ emissions around 10% lower than ordinary Portland cement (OPC). The company said that the conversion marked an important step towards reaching its overall 2030 and 2050 decarbonisation targets, which were announced in April 2022.

The Hannibal plant is the company's second conversion to PLC in 2022. It earlier converted Continental Cement's Davenport plant to 100% PLC production in April 2022.

Peru: UNACEM reported a consolidated net profit of US$285m in the second quarter of 2022, a 25.8% year-on-year rise compared to the second quarter of 2022. The increase was explained by higher revenues, coupled to a drop in interest expenses. However, the quarter was characterised by a higher-than-expected cost of sales.

UNACEM's consolidated revenues for the quarter reached US$367.4m, up 19.8% year-on-year. This was due to higher cement sales volumes in Peru (+13.8%) and the US (+15.7%) and higher ready-mix concrete sales in the US (+34.0%) and Chile (+54.0%), as well as higher energy sales in Peru. This was complemented by higher sales prices in all markets.

Israel: Nesher Cement has been fined US$1.9m for violations of the Clean Air Law at its cement factory in Ramla. The fine was issued for repeatedly exceeding permitted emissions limits, including for mercury/mercury compounds and particulate matter. 22 violations have been recorded since July 2022.

“The recent fine issued against the Nesher Ramla cement plant is a very welcome step forward, but it’s far from enough,” said Knesset member Alon Tal, chairman of the Subcommittee on Environmental and Climate Impacts on Health. “Just a month ago the ministry issued a permit for seven years to the factory, notwithstanding its dubious record as a serial violator of Israel’s Clean Air Law. This makes absolutely no sense.”

Local activists living near the factory were also not satisfied with the value of the fine. “The Environmental Protection Ministry has confirmed that there’s an unusual rate of cancer, especially lung cancer, in Ramla and Lod,” said Benjamin Ruggill, leader of a citizen action group, to local press.

China: Taiwan Cement Corporation and Asia Cement Corporation, both based in Taiwan, have said that extended power rationing in China’s Sichuan Province has had only limited impacts of their cement plants in the region. They reported that they had complied with the authorities’ requirements by scheduling maintenance work for their factories and that they would continue to closely monitor the development of the power situation in the Province.

Power rationing has been introduced in Sichuan Province due to reduced hydroelectric power capacity, which has been affected by the most severe heatwave and drought in the region for 60 years.

Australia: Adbri has reported that the ongoing upgrade at its Kwinana cement plant, previously estimated to cost US$137m, is now likely to cost closer to US$157m. It cited inflation and supply chain issues as the main reasons behind the 15% increase to the cost of the project, which seeks to combine its Western Australia operations at a single site, while raising its capacity by 36% to 1.5Mt/yr. The company said the upgrade was about 25% compete as at 30 June 2022, while procurement was about 75% committed. It is scheduled for commissioning in mid 2023.

Elsewhere, Adbri has also said that its definitive feasibility study for a Kalgoorlie lime kiln is on track for completion in the first half of 2023. The study includes mine planning and front-end engineering design.

India: The Adani Group is likely to launch an US$3.8bn open offer to acquire a 26% stake in each of Holcim's two Indian listed entities, Ambuja Cements and ACC, from public shareholders. The group announced that it had clinched a deal to acquire a controlling stake in the businesses for US$10.5bn in May 2022.

As per the revised schedule submitted by ICICI Securities and Deutsche Equities India, the managers of the open offer, tendering of the shares in the open will start from 26 August 2022 and end on 9 September 2022.

Colombia: Cementos Argos has restarted kiln 2 at its Toluviejo Plant in Sucre after more than six months of maintenance and improvement work and after almost five years out of use. The US$7.4m project has increased the plant’s capacity by 0.2Mt/yr to 0.8Mt/yr.

The main works carried out included the rehabilitation of the preheater tower stands, the installation of a new burner that provides greater performance and re-conditioning of the kiln.

“We are very excited about the start-up of this kiln, as it is an investment that materialises our trust and the commitment that we have in Argos with the development of Colombia,” said Carlos Horacio Yusty, vice president of the Colombia Region of Argos. “In addition, it prepares us to continue serving the national and international demand for cement in a more efficient manner.”

Slovenia: Salonit Anhovo has launched a new 2.22MW roof-top solar power plant, with all power generated used immediately by the plant. The installation, the largest factory rooftop solar power plant in Slovenia, is expected to generate 2120MWh of electricity per year, enough to power 500 homes. It will reduce CO₂ emissions by 995t/yr.

The solar plant was launched less than 12 months after the contract was signed between Salonit Anhovo and solar plant construction firm Interenerg.