Displaying items by tag: Plant
Myanmar: Three local activists have been arrested for protesting against a new cement plant being built at Patheingyi Township in Mandalay Region. In late July 2018 local residents marched on environmental grounds from Mandalay to Nay Pyi Taw in protest against the construction of a 5000t/yr coal-fired cement plant in Dahattaw Village-tract, Patheingyi Township, according to the Asia News Network. However, police intervened and started legal action against some of the protestors.
Germany: ThyssenKrupp has decreased its earnings forecast for its 2017 – 2018 financial year due to the poor performance of its Industrial Solutions division. The division is expected to report a negative adjusted earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) of Euro200m in the third quarter of the year due to higher expected total costs, particularly for a cement plant in Saudi Arabia and two other industrial projects. The group said that the number of major projects in the cement and fertiliser sector had decreased ‘considerably,’ partly due to the production overcapacity in the cement market.
"It is important to me to call it what it is. The results of our analysis at Industrial Solutions are anything but satisfying. The structure of plant construction must be adjusted to the changed market conditions in order to achieve a turnaround and finally become competitive again. We must act swiftly here," said Guido Kerkhoff, chairman of the executive board of ThyssenKupp. The group has proposed focusing its Industrial Solutions division on small and medium-sized projects and targeting plant construction on the higher-margin service business.
In mid-2017 the group announced plans to reorganised its Industrial Solutions division, including the decision to cut 1500 jobs in operational areas.
India: The Industries Department of Himachal Pradesh is preparing to allow construction work to start at a new cement plant at Sikridhar in the Chamba district in September 2018. The project is a long running scheme from the local government that was first mooted in 2002, according to the Times of India newspaper. The project has been linked to various companies previously including Jaiprakash Associates.
Philippines: Big Boss Cement is considering procuring a mill for its new US$215m plant project from European equipment manufacturers including Denmark’s FLSmdith, Germany’s Gebr. Pfeiffer and Germany’s Loesche. Ishmael Ordonez, vice-president of the cement producer, said that a vertical roller mill would take up less space than the horizontal mill it was currently using from a Chinese supplier, according to Inside International Industrials. The company is set to start production at a new plant in Porac in Pampanga in August 2018. However, it is planning to expand the production capacity at the unit based on anticipated demand.
INC Vallemi cement plant paralysed by fuel shortage
31 July 2018Paraguay: Industria Nacional del Cemento’s (INC) Vallemi cement plant has been paralysed by a coke shortage. All operations at the unit’s clinker kiln have been suspended, according to the Ultima Hora newspaper. The producer is still making cement deliveries but its clinker stocks have fallen to below 30,000t. The company reportedly only has fuel oil left for one day and sufficient coke for one day of full operation. It is awaiting the arrival of a 6000t consignment of coke.
Italy: Exergy has signed a contract with Cementi Rossi for a 3.5MW organic rankine cycle (ORC) waste heat recovery (WHR) system to be installed at the Pederobba plant near Treviso. The scope of the contract includes engineering, design, site erection, commissioning and start up of the power plant and a long term after sales service.
Exergy designed a customized and compact ORC solution to convert approximately 16MWt available from exhaust heat in the clinker cooler into 3.5MW of electricity utilising an air cooled condensing system, a radial outflow turbine as expander and choosing a non-flammable fluid to grant maximum safety during plant operation. The electricity produced by the ORC module will feed approximately the 30% of the energy demand of the cement plant.
“Our ORC WHR systems, leveraging on the higher efficiency of the radial outflow turbine, can help to boost at maximum level the performance of cement plants. For Cementi Rossi in particular we worked to supply a tailor made solution, choosing a non-flammable fluid in the cycle and a very compact plant design with a high level of prefabricated components to reduce costs and time for erection,” said Claudio Spadacini, the chief executive officer (CEO) of Exergy.
Zambia: China National Building Material (CNBM) Zambia has commissioned a building materials plant at Chongwe Mapande Industrial Park near Lusaka. The company has invested an estimated US$500m in the project, according to the Lusaka Times. The first phase of the project includes a 1Mt/yr cement plant, a brick plant, a ready-mix concrete plant, an aggregate production line and a sand plant.
China: Anhui Conch says it has resumed production at three production lines at the cement plant run by its Tongling Conch subsidiary at Gusheng in Anhui province. In late July 2018, Tongling Conch received a written notification from the Tongling Environmental Protection Bureau requesting the ‘immediate’ resumption of operation of Tongling Conch’s waste incineration and ancillary systems for treatment of domestic waste of Tongling City. The suspension of production at the cement plant followed the temporary closure of a pier used by the plant in late May 2018 in accordance with new government regulations on drinking water supply and pollution.
Namibia: Whale Rock Cement plans to commission its new plant near Otjiwarongo at the end of October 2018. The 1.2Mt/yr unit had an investment of US$350m, according to the Xinhua News Agency. Cement from the plant will be sold under the Cheetah brand. The project is a joint venture between China's Asia-Africa Business Management and local partners.
Vietnam: The Ministry of Construction has opposed the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s proposal to transfer the Quang Son cement plant from Vietnam Industrial Construction Corporation (Vinaincon) to Vietnam Cement Industry Corporation (Vicem) on the grounds of the plant’s losses and debts. Both Vinaincon and Vicem are government owned, according to the Viet Nam News newspaper.
Luong Quang Khai, chairman of Vicem’s board of members, said that the Quang Son cement plant is located in a poor position for transport logistics, which has led to high production costs. The plant has also suffered from losses while its loans have grown to equal 95% of the plant’s total investment. Khai also noted that the potential new owner Vicem has undergone financial difficulties following its acquisition of the Ha Long and Song Thao cement plants.
Previously, the Ministry of Industry and Trade suggested that the government transfer the Quang Son cement plant to Vicem from Vinaincon. Under the proposal, Vicem would back the loans taken out by Vinaincon for the Quang Son cement plant. Formerly known as the Thai Nguyen cement plant, Quang Son started commercial operation in July 2011 with a cement production capacity of 1.5Mt/yr.