Displaying items by tag: Government

Algeria: Trade Minister Said Djellab has revealed that the country’s cement exports are expected to reach a value of US$400m by 2021. Export earnings were around US$20m in 2018 and then tripled to US$60m in 2019, according to the El Mujahid newspaper. The minister made the comments at a ceremony marking an export of cement from a Ciment Lafarge Souakri (CILAS) plant. He added that the local market has a cement production capacity of 40Mt/yr and that only 22Mt/yr is required domestically. Producers are targeting countries in west Africa, including Guinea Bissau, Senegal, Gabon and Mali.

Paraguay: The Ministry of Industry and Commerce (MIC) has lifted restrictions on cement imports following problems with local production. The local market needs around 100,000 bags/day of cement and state-owned Industria Nacional del Cemento (INC) normally provides around half of this, according to the ABC Color newspaper. However, production problems at INC’s plants have seen significant drops in supply.

Pakistan: DG Khan Cement has asked the government of Punjab province if it can expand the production capacity at one of its cement plants by 12,000t/day. Bloomberg said that it had seen a letter sent to the local government and that Javed Iqbal Malik, a senior economic adviser at Punjab province's industries department, had confirmed receiving it. The approval process could take up to 12 months. If accepted the upgrade could see DG Khan Cement surpass Bestway Cement to become the country’s largest cement producer with a production capacity of 10.7Mt/yr.

Uganda: The Uganda government’s Committee on Natural Resources suspended pozzolano extraction at quarries in eastern Uganda on 14 November 2019. The Daily Monitor reported the cause of the suspension as pollution of water sources. Speaking at Tororo Cement’s Chemangal quarry, committee chair Kefa Kivanuka said that “The regulatory authorities were negligent,” and that activity at quarries was suspended until the completion of a damage assessment involving committee meetings with cement producers for the review of their pozzolano extraction licences. Besides Tororo Cement, Hima Cement, Kampala Cement and Kenya-based National Cement subsidiary Simba Cement all supply plants with pozzolano extracted in the region.

Russia: The government of the Republic of Turva has announced its approval of a 2Mt/yr integrated cement plant near the extensive limestone and clay reserves around Shagonar in the Republic of Turva. Local investors will undertake the development, scheduled for completion in late 2020, at an estimated cost of US$5.48m. The announcement has attracted uproar from residents of the area for the proximity of the intended site to the sacred mountain Haiyrakan, where the most significant limestone deposits are located.

India: Tamil Nadu Cement has constructed a second 1.0Mt/yr production line at its 0.7Mt/yr Ariyalur cement plant, bringing its total capacity to 1.7Mt/yr. Projects Today has reported that Tamil Nadu Cement, which also operates a 0.4Mt/yr integrated cement plant in Alangulam, will employ 250 at the second line, the development of which will cost US$115m. In the 12 months to 31 March 2019, Tamil Nadu Cement sold 74% of cement produced at its plants (0.4Mt) to the Rural Development Agency and other government departments at lower than market rate.

USA: Cemex USA’s 0.9Mt/yr integrated Clinchfield cement plant has received a Sentinels of Safety Award from the National Mining Association, National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, US Department of the Interior Office of Surface Mining, Reclamation and Enforcement and Bureau of Land Management for safety and environmental stewardship at its associated quarry. PR Newswire has reported that the plant and quarry operated for a total of 200,000 hours in 2018 without any employee sustaining a lost-time injury (LTI). Cemex USA president Jaime Muguiro said “Our Clinchfield operations serve as a strong example of what we can accomplish with safety as a number one priority.”

UK: The Mayor of London visited Mexican-based Cemex’s Stepney readymix concrete plant to launch a road safety initiative along with Transport for London (TfL) and London Councils. The initiative consists of a ratings scheme of up to five stars for in-cabin vision for heavy goods vehicles (HGVs), with a ban on zero-star vehicles inside of Greater London. The regulation comes into effect in November 2020, before which time HGV operators may install a ‘Safe System’ consisting of sensors and noise alerts, in order to apply for a Safety Permit to keep their vehicles on the roads.

Zambia: The majority government-owned Zambia Consolidated Copper Mine (ZCCM) Investment Holdings has appointed Mabvuto Chipata its chair. ZCCM’s cement division faces the challenge of national overcapacity due to market saturation as it moves ahead with the US$600m construction of a 1.6Mt/yr integrated cement plant and 57MW power station in Masaiti, Copperbelt province. Thierry Charles, speaking on behalf of the Euronext minority shareholders, expressed relief at ‘the definitive turning of a page on several years of hazardous, inconsistent and disastrous investments.’

Paraguay: Industria Nacional del Cemento (INC) has signed an agreement with the Ministerio de Urbanismo, Vivienda y Hábitat (MUVH), the government body responsible for commissioning residential home construction, for preferential cement prices for companies to which the latter awards building contracts. INC president Ernesto Benítez Petters said “Cooperation with the MUVH will strengthen the consumption of cement produced in Paraguay by ensuring it a price and the provision of demand from this type of project.”