Displaying items by tag: LafargeHolcim
When to call it a day…?
26 October 2016One fascinating statistic stands out in a study on how the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) pays its bills: cement represented 4% of its revenue in 2015 or around US$100m. The Centre for the Analysis of Terrorism (CAT) came up with this figure as part of its analysis on how the group finances itself. Its data was based on available information such as local sources, internal ISIS documents and reports from governments and institutions.
What’s more, the previous year in 2014, CAT estimated that ISIS brought in US$300m from cement sales. The difference in revenue between 2015 and 2014 came about from the group losing control of territory. In late 2014 it controlled four cement plants: the Lafarge Al-Jalabiya plant in Ayn al-Arabin, the Al-Raqqah Guris Cement plant and Fallujah, Kubaisa and Al-Qa’im plants in Iraq. Altogether it had a cement production capacity of 7.5Mt/yr, a higher capacity than 62% of the cement producing nations that are recognised formally by the United Nations. Briefly it had production parity with countries like Angola, Uzbekistan and Kuwait.
However the loss of the Al-Jalabiya and Kubaisa plants has stifled this revenue stream. At its peak ISIS couldn’t have been selling cement for more than something like US$40/t (capacity / revenue) if the plants were operating at full capacity. Yet it’s much more likely that the plants were chronically under-utilised and prices significantly higher in the heat, dust and confusion of a militant group attempting to form a state in a warzone.
Global Cement Weekly has covered previously the furore that erupted when French media accused Lafarge of cutting deals with ISIS to keep its Jalabiya cement plant during the early stages of the Syrian Civil War. At the time of the revelations in June 2016 LafargeHolcim said that its first priority was the safety and security of its employees at the plant before it eventually closed it, although it did not deny accusations directly.
Since then the plant’s former security manager Jacob Waerness has popped up in an interview with Bloomberg in connection with a book he wrote about the affair. According to Waerness, Lafarge stayed in the country for too long before the plant was finally seized by ISIS in September 2014.
The problem for Lafarge, as other multinational companies left the warzone, was that the US$680m plant had only been operational since late 2010 before hostilities broke out in 2011. Essentially, it tried to wait out the conflict and then got left behind. Pertinent to the start of this column, Waerness says that as the more extreme groups took control of the surrounding area he was offered and declined a meeting with the IS finance chief in Raqqa in the summer of 2013. However else one might describe IS, it was and clearly is well aware of the revenue to be gained from functioning cement plants.
LafargeHolcim has since started an internal review into the reported allegations under the auspices of its Finance & Audit Committee. In September 2016 the Iranian-backed Fars News Agency was reporting that US special forces were using the Jalabiya plant as a base. If and when peace comes to the region it will be intriguing to find out what condition the plant is in. Until then, LafargeHolcim will have to wait and take the loss on its investment.
Holcim US Hagerstown cement plant celebrates US$96m upgrade
26 October 2016US: Holcim US has officially completed its US$96m upgrade project to its Hagerstown cement plant in Maryland. The two-year modernisation project has helped the plant to adhere to NESHAP environmental rules and has increased production capacity at the site by 0.2Mt/yr.
"A cornerstone of the regional community for 113 years, we recognise the importance of this facility to the Hagerstown community," said John Stull, chief executive officer of US cement operations for LafargeHolcim. "Our investment to modernise clinker production represents our continued commitment to our customers and local manufacturing. The facility will continue to be a strong and reliable partner to the community for many more years to come."
The upgrades to the plant should deliver a more than a 60% reduction to nitrogen oxides (NOx), approximately a 50% reduction to sulfur dioxide (SO2) and more than a 75% reduction to Particulate Matter (PM) emissions from the plant.
Brazil: Brazil's antitrust watchdog Cade has decided to end its investigation into 18 companies from the cement sector over alleged anti-competition practices. The allegations were that some of the companies had reached an agreement to refuse to provide three types of cement to competitors outside of an economic group, which would lead to increased prices of the products, according to the Valor Economico newspaper. Cade determined punishments were to be applied to Holcim Brasil, Cimento Tupi and Votorantim Pimentos. However, case leader Paulo Burnier decided that there insufficient evidence to apply sanctions on the majority of companies concerned. He also noted that some of the companies had already been set punishments by Cade for involvement in cartel practices.
Slovenia: LafargeHolcim will pay Euro270,000 in compensation to farmers in the Zasavje region, who claimed that pollution damaged their land. LafargeHolcim settled with the farmers before a long running court case ordered three other companies to pay up to Euro1.17m each, according to the Slovenian Press Agency. The farmers presented measurements showing permitted emissions had been exceeded by 10-fold or in some cases even 100-fold between 1991 and 2002, alongside evidence of declining yields and animal reproduction rates, as well as damage to orchards and forests. The other companies involved in the case were the Termoelektrarna Trbovlje (TET) thermal power plant, the Steklarna Hrastnik glassworks and the TKI chemicals factory.
LafargeHolcim buys stakes in SCB Lafarge Benin and Cimencam
13 October 2016Benin/Cameroon: LafargeHolcim Maroc Afrique has purchased a 50% stake in SCB Lafarge Benin and 54.7% in Cimencam in Cameroon. Amounts for the deals have not been disclosed, according to the Ecofin Agency. LafargeHolcim Maroc Afrique, a joint venture between Lafarge Holcim and the Société nationale d’investissement also bought Socimat in Cote d’Ivoire in July 2016.
SCB Lafarge in Benin produces about 600,000t/yr of cement and Cimencam produces 1.7Mt/yr. The new acquisitions are part of LafargeHolcim’s expansion strategy across Africa. Countries with high growth potential such as Burkina Faso, Gabon, Mali, Mauritania, Congo, DRC and Senegal have also been targeted.
LafargeHolcim to sell stake in Cemento Polpaico for US$225m
10 October 2016Chile: LafargeHolcim has signed an agreement with Inversiones Caburga, part of the Hurtado Vicuña Group, to sell its 54.3% stake in Cemento Polpaico for US$225m. The transaction will be carried out by a public tender offer by Inversiones Caburga to all shareholders of Cemento Polpaico.
Cemento Polpaico operates one integrated plant and two grinding plants with an annual cement capacity of 2.3Mt/yr. The company is also a leading ready-mix concrete producer operating 25 plants and produces aggregates. The launch of the public tender offer is subject to the approval of the Chilean competition authorities, which is expected for the first half of 2017. Following the successful completion LafargeHolcim would exit Chile completely.
Cash crunch hinders Lafarge Zimbabwe
05 October 2016Zimbabwe: Lafarge Zimbabwe has blamed cash shortages for mounting losses. The company reported that it made a loss of US$2.2m in the first six months of 2016, up from a loss of US$1.3m in the same period of 2015. Its sales revenue grew slightly to US$26.5m from US$25.4, according to the New Zimbabwe newspaper. The cement producer has blamed the loss on cash shortages in the country and competition from imports.
“The volumes of cement sales remained subdued due to increased competitive activity in the total market following the influx of cement imports into the country as well as the entry of a major competitor into the Harare market,” said chairman Kumbirayi Katsande. He added that import restrictions would be helpful but that they would not solve major structural problems with the local economy.
Cash shortages are causing delays in paying foreign creditors said Katsanda. The country is preparing to introduce bond notes, a new local currency, to ease the problem, in November 2016.
LafargeHolcim installs Schenck Process logistics equipment at two cement plants in Russia
04 October 2016Russia: Schenck Process has installed two Logiq dispatch automation systems at two LafargeHolcim cement plants at Ferzikovo and Voskresensk. This has resulted in the plants being upgraded to the LafargeHolcim group’s Smart Factory standard.
At Ferzikovo LafargeHolcim is currently engaged in a major investment project for the Russian market. The plant has three incoming and outgoing scales as well as 11 loading stations for loose cement and two bag loading stations. Schenck Process converted the parking lot with registration, the incoming and outgoing scales and all loading points for fully automatic, unmanned operation. Self-service terminals for registration and weighing were installed in the entrance and exit areas. In the loose loading area, a Logiq loading terminal, including the Disomat Tersus weighing electronics with Profibus interface to the PLC and ultrasonic sensors, were installed. In Voskresensk the conversion work included the car park with registration, incoming and outgoing scales, three loading scales and one loading point for packaged goods.
Schenck Process ensured smooth delivery operations at both plants throughout the installation and commissioning process. Incoming silo trucks for loose loading, more than 300/day at Ferzikovo alone, continued to be processed throughout.
Since 2013, Schenck Process has implemented the Logiq dispatch automation system at various plants belonging to the Swiss construction material group, including at 18 cement plants in eastern Europe.
Lafarge Canada to test burning tyres at its Brookfield plant
30 September 2016Canada: Lafarge Canada has started a partnership with Dalhousie University researcher Mark Gibson to test tyre-derived fuel on an industrial scale at the Brookfield cement plant in Nova Scotia. Working under a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Discovery Grant, this initiative will research the adoption of low carbon fuels in the cement industry. The research will continue the partnership between Lafarge Canada and Dalhousie's Faculty of Engineering.
"My students and I are very pleased to see this work enter the real world. Based on our research, we expect to see significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions from the Brookfield cement plant and thereby help Nova Scotia move one step closer to a low carbon economy," said Gibson. He added that the use of tires will also reduce NOx emissions. In 2015, Gibson and his team published a report entitled ‘Use of scrap tyres as an alternative fuel source at the Lafarge cement kiln, Brookfield, Nova Scotia.’
Due to different initiatives including previous work with Dalhousie's Faculty of Engineering, the Brookfield plant has substituted alternative fuels for conventional ones by using front-end burner injection in its kiln. The plant is expected to reach a substitution rate of up to 30% by the end of 2016. Following the test using tyres the cement producer expects to use 15% of its fuel requirements from 450,000 tyres per year, or just under half the amount of tyres generated in Nova Scotia. The project proposal will be explained in further detail at a Public Meeting planned for 20 October 2016 in Brookfield.
Nigeria: A new 2.5Mt/yr production line at the UNICEM Calabar cement plant is set to start production in October 2016. The subsidiary of LafargeHolcim will employ 1024 workers, comprising 539 expatriates and 485 local staff, according to Today Digital.