Displaying items by tag: Government

Spain: FYM, a subsidiary of HeidelbergCement, is facing a potential legal battle to expand the quarry at its La Araña cement plant near Malaga. It has applied to the local government for a compulsory order to buy land at the site, according to the Diario Sur newspaper. FYM says that it has the authorisation to use up to 176 hectares near its plant for mineral extraction but that it is only using 43 hectares at present. The agreement in place allows the cement producer to buy land on a compulsory basis if an agreement can’t be reached with the land owners. However, the current land owner and FYM have disagreed over the price.

Cameroon: The Ministry of Finance forecasts that demand for cement will rise by 10% due to various infrastructure projects. The government department also indicated that some cement producers are increasing their production capacity, according to Business in Cameroon.

Cimencam, a subsidiary of LafargeHolcim, is planning to build a 0.5Mt/yr grinding plant at Nomayos in Yaoundé. It is expected to be complete in 2019. Dangote Cement plans to build a 1.5Mt/yr plant in Yaoundé and Ciments de l'Afrique (CIMAF) is upgrading its plant Douala to 1.5Mt/yr from 0.5Mt/yr. The CIMAF project is scheduled for completion also in 2019. Following commissioning of all the new projects, the market share of each cement producer is expected to be Dangote Cement with 45%, Cimencam with 30%, CIMAF with 22% and Medcem with 3%.

Norway: The government has proposed continuing funding for Norcem’s CO₂ capture and storage project at its Brevik cement plant. The announcement follows an assessment by the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy of local carbon capture, transport and storage (CCS) projects. The government has proposed to fund FEED studies (Front End Engineering and Design studies) with around Euro8m in 2018. The total funding for the demonstration project in 2018 amounts to Euro29m, including funds transferred from 2017. The proposed funds for 2018 will cover FEED studies of CO₂ transport, storage and up to two capture facilities.

“Of the three CO₂ capture projects evaluated, Norcem has the best conditions for a successful implementation. Norcem has demonstrated project execution abilities and relatively low cost per tonne CO₂ captured compared to the other two capture projects. The cement industry is also a significant contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions,” said the government in a statement Norcem, HeidelbergCement local subsidiary, which sbeat other projects by Yara and Fortum Oslo Varme to the funding.

Barbados: Trinidad Cement and its Barbadian subsidiary Arawak Cement have taken legal action against the Government of Barbados over allegedly breaking the Caribbean Community Single Market and Economy. The complaint relates to accusations that the country broke import duties on cement, according to Barbados Today. The government has been accused of reducing import tariffs to 5% from 60%.

Arawak Cement and competitor Rock Hard Cement have battled for the local market since the entry of the latter company in the market in 2015. Trinidad Cement has also taken action against Turkish cement importers previously.

Uruguay: Production has resumed at the Administración Nacional de Combustibles, Alcoholes y Portland’s (ANCAP) Minas and y Paysandú cement plants following a strike, according to the El Espectador newspaper. The disruption ended following negotiation between management, the union, the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Mining and the Ministry of Labor and Social Security. In April 2018 it was reported that production at the Minas plant had stopped for two months due to union action.

Uganda: Local cement producers are facing challenges meeting the specification required for cement being used by the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) project. Project coordinator Kasingye Kyamugambi said at a procurement conference in Kampala that the project was facing issues with cement, reinforcement steel and sand, according to the Daily Monitor newspaper. Hima Cement is producing one specific product for the project following discussions with the SGR. However, the railway needs eight different types of cement.

Kyamugambi has called for legal cover for the infrastructure project to bypass local product sourcing laws. He has asked that new legislation be introduced to cover projects with a lifecycle of over a century.

The SGR is being built by China’s China Harbour Engineering Company. The project is intended to link up to Kenya’s railway project at Tororo with proposed links to Rwanda and South Sudan. The Democratic Republic of Congo has also expressed interested in the line.

Uzbekistan: President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has signed a resolution that fixes the price of cement to support housing and infrastructure projects. The new legislation will force approved suppliers to sell 2Mt of cement for a fixed price to contractors, according to Uzbekistan Daily. Tax levels for cement producers have also been increased.

India: Sanghi Industries has received environment clearance for an upgrade to its cement plant at Sanghipuram, Kutch district in Gujarat. The unit’s clinker production capacity is being raised to 7.5Mt/yr from 3.5Mt/yr, according to the Times of India newspaper. Its cement production capacity is being increased to 8.6Mt/yr from 4Mt/yr. The US$194m project also involves building a cement grinding plant at Surat. The project is expected to be completed in 2020.

Afghanistan: The Ministry of Mines & Petroleum plans to re-issue a tender for the Jabal Saraj cement plant. The winning company will have to invest US$170m into the project to build 1Mt/yr plant, according to Tolo News. Previously, a local company won the tendering process to renovate the unit but the High Economic Council has decided to find a company with more industry experience.

Algeria: Groupe des Ciments d’Algérie’s (GICA) has made its first export to Europe. The Ministry of Industry and Mines said that 45,000t of cement was exported to Europe via GICA’s building materials distribution subsidiary, according to the L’Expression newspaper. The consignment was the last part of a contract to export 0.2Mt of cement to Europe.