Displaying items by tag: Government

Belarus: Belarusian Cement Company (BCC) sold 1.85Mt of cement over the first five months of 2020, up by 12% year-on-year from 1.65Mt in the corresponding period of 2019. The Belarusian Architecture and Construction Ministry has reported that, of BCC’s three subsidiaries, Krichevtsementnoshifer recorded the largest sales growth in the period, of 9.6% to 465,000t. Belarusian Cement Mill sold 657,000t, up by 3.6%, including 249,000t to Russia, and Krasnoselskstroymaterialy sold 568,000t, up by 0.2%.

India: JSW Group says that it will cease US$400m/yr worth of imports of Chinese equipment and materials due to Chinese military activities on the Sino-Indian border in Kashmir. Managing director Parth Jindal said, “The unprovoked attack by the Chinese on Indian soil, on our brave jawaans has been a huge wakeup call and a clarion call for action.”

Israel: The Environmental Protection Ministry (EPM) has granted Nesher-Israel Cement Enterprises a licence to substitute more refuse-derived fuels (RDF) for petcoke than was previously permitted at its 5Mt/yr integrated Ramle, Central District cement plant. The Times of Israel newspaper has reported that the licence also allows for greater metal emissions. The company said, “As is customary in the global cement industry, the Nesher plant in Ramle uses raw materials and alternative fuels, thus achieving a number of environmental goals, including reducing landfill, minimising the use of natural resources and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”

Bangladesh: Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC) and Saudi Arabian-based Engineering Dimension International Investment (EDII) have formed a joint-venture called Saudi Bangla Integrated Cement in order to build a new integrated cement plant. The proposed unit will have a clinker production capacity of 12,000t/day, according to the Dhaka Tribune newspaper. It will be supplied with limestone from Meghalaya in India via a long conveyor belt. If realised the project is expected to create up to 700 direct and indirect jobs. Government-owned BCIC previously signed a partnership agreement with EDII in late 2018.

India: Mahendra Singhi, the president of the Cement Manufacturers Association (CMA), says that the cement sector can grow its exports with support from the government. He made his comments at the 16th Green Cementech 2020, a virtual conference organised by the CMA and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), according to the Hindu newspaper. Singhi said, “The cement industry in India is already aligned with the new vision of self reliance (atmanirbharta) of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. With the right policies in place and support from the government, the Indian cement industry can even increase its production capacity and contribute significantly to India’s global trade and exports.”

China: Huaxin Cement has announced that it burned 2.7t of seized opiates in its fuel mix at its Diwei cement plant in Chongqing. Representatives of the Chongqing Anti-Drug Committee, Public Service Bureau, Eco-Environmental Bureau and Procuratorate were in attendance. Huaxin Cement reports that the dangerous substances have been “safely disposed of.” The producer said that this is the largest single volume of drugs to have been combusted in a cement kiln. The plant previously burnt 1.22Mt of illicit substances in 2018.

Austria: Lafarge Zementwerke, OMV, Verbund and Borealis have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for the joint planning and construction of a full-scale plant by 2030 to capture CO₂ and process it into synthetic fuels, plastics or other chemicals. As part of the ‘Carbon2ProductAustria’ (C2PAT) project the companies intend to build the unit at the integrated Mannersdorf cement plant and capture all of the 0.7Mt/yr of CO₂ emitted.

"We are committed to leading the industry in reducing carbon emissions and shifting towards low-carbon construction. We have worked consistently and successfully on the reduction of the CO₂ footprint of our cement plants, products and solutions. Ultimately, CO₂-neutral cement production can only be possible with the implementation of breakthrough technologies, like carbon capture, which is why we have great expectations for the C2PAT project", said Lafarge’s local chief executive officer (CEO) José Antonio Primo.

The project aims to use hydrogen produced by Verbund to allow OMV to transform the captured CO₂ into a range of olefins, fuels and plastics. Borealis would then use some of these products as a feedstock to manufacture plastics. However, the companies say that, “taking the next steps towards a Zero CO₂ economy will require the right financial as well as favourable regulatory framework conditions. The success of C2PAT will largely depend on whether the right financial and regulatory framework conditions are created both at the European Union and Austrian national level.”

The joint project is designed in three phases. In phase one, the partners are currently evaluating and developing a joint strategy for project development, business modelling and process engineering. Based on the results of phase one, a cluster of industrial pilot plants in the Eastern part of Austria could be technically developed and built in the mid-2020s in phase two. Phase three entails building a full scale CO₂ capture and utilisation unit at a cement plant.

Lafarge Zementwerke is the Austrian subsidiary of building materials manufacturer LafargeHolcim. OMV produces and markets oil and gas, energy and other petrochemical products. Verbund is an Austrian-based electricity generator, with a focus on hydroelectric power. Borealis is a chemical company and a producer of polyolefins, base chemicals and fertilisers.

Turkmenistan: President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov has signed a degree announcing the start of phase two of construction of the Baharden and Lebap cement plants in July 2020. Turkmenistan Today State News Agency has announced that the decree permits the Ministry of Industry and Construction to conclude contracts with Beyik-Bina for construction of the Baharden plant and with Turkmen Enjam for construction of the Lebap plant, each with a 1.0Mt/yr integrated capacity. Both projects are scheduled for completion in 2020.

Uzbekistan: The government has announced the sale of shares in UzAssets, an investment company founded to privatise its 36% stake in Qizilqumsement. The Information Agency of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan (DUNYO) has reported that Qizilqumsement is a 51% subsidiary of Uzpromstroymaterialy, with the remainder held by private minority shareholders. Qizilqumsement operates the 3.8Mt/yr Qizilqumsement cement plant in Navoi, Navoiy Region.

Bangladesh: The Bangladesh Cement Manufacturers Association (BCMA) has suggested the removal a 3% non-refundable advance income tax (AIT) and a 3% import duty on raw materials, as well as the reduction of a US$5.88/t import duty on clinker by 40% to US$3.53/t. The Dhaka Tribune newspaper has reported that BCMA members are struggling to pay their dues due to the impacts of the coronavirus lockdown, which caused the sector a loss of US$353m between 21 March 2020 and 21 June 2020.

BCMA President Mohammed Kabir said, “To generate taxes and revenue from this sector, the government should save our businesses and meet our logical demands in the final budget. We are really frustrated that our demands were unaddressed in the proposed budget. Our working capital will dwindle if the government keeps charging the AIT.” He added, “If the government does not remove the 3% non-adjustable AIT, then at least it should be declared as adjustable tax.”