Displaying items by tag: Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia: The Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources has congratulated City Cement on achieving the advanced level assessment as part of the Future Factories Program. The program uses the SIRI methodology (Smart Industries Readiness Index), which represents the global index adopted by the country to measure how industrial plants are adopting digital developments, such as interconnectivity and software-based automation, with assessments conducted by accredited evaluators. The government is promoting the initiative to raise industrial efficiency, reduce costs and create jobs.

Saudi Arabia: Riyadh Cement has ordered an airslide analyser from Switzerland-based SpectraFlow Analytics for its white cement production line. The contract also includes raw mix proportioning software. The product is an online analyser able to measure raw materials in airslides. The vendor says that by using its analyser, and a site-specific raw mix proportioning strategy, the variation in the local raw materials can be balanced out to increase consistency of the raw meal and kiln feed quality. Also the variable MgO, Na₂O, K₂O, Cl and SO₃ content is optimally monitored.

This order is SpectraFlow Analytics’ 49th order for the cement Industry and the first airslide analyser installation in Saudi Arabia. This order raises the installed base in Saudi Arabia to seven analysers (6 crossbelt, 1 airslide) and worldwide to 71 analysers (40 crossbelt and 31 airslide).

SpectraFlow Analytics sells online analysis products to the cement, bauxite, gold, platinum, copper, potash, phosphate, coal and other minerals industries. Its products are based on near Infrared (NIR) spectroscopy as opposed to using radioactive sources or neutron generators.

Saudi Arabia: The General Authority for Competition (GAC) has fined 14 local cement producers around US$37m for price fixing. The companies were found to have broken local competition law following an investigation by GAC. They are now each liable for a US$2.7m penalty. The producers concerned are: Al-Safwa Cement; Al-Madina Cement; Umm Al-Qura Cement; Al-Jawf Cement Company; Qassim Cement; Najran Cement; Southern Province Cement; United Industrial Cement; Yamama Cement; Riyadh Cement (Saudi White Cement); Arabian Cement; Saudi Cement; Yanbu Cement; and Hail Cement.

Saudi Arabia: Southern Province Cement says that it has finished reviewing submissions for a contract to build a new line at its Jazan cement plant, and is now drafting and reviewing the contract to sign with its chosen contractor. The new line will have a capacity of 10,000t/day and will replace existing production lines.

Southern Province Cement recorded sales of US$357m in 2022, down by 9% year-on-year from US$325m in 2021. The company said that its operating expenses rose, while its cement volumes and selling prices fell. Its profit dropped by 30% to US$80.2m from US$114m.

Saudi Arabia: Northern Region Cement has appointed Sulaiman Salim Al Harbi as its chair. Faisal Hamad Al Sugair was also appointed as vice-chair and Saud Saad Al Arifi as managing director of the board of directors.

Saudi Arabia: Eastern Province Cement has invited contractors to bid for work on the construction of its planned 10,000t/day Najibiyah clinker plant.

Trade Arabia News has reported that the producer also plans to upgrade multiple decommissioned lines at its 3.5Mt/yr Al Khursaniyah cement plant.

Saudi Arabia: Riyadh Cement's full-year 2022 results show an 11% year-on-year drop in sales to US$159m, from US$179m. The producer's operating and administrative costs dropped throughout the year. As such, it recovered a net profit of US$50.5m, up by 13% year-on-year from US$56.9m.

Saudi Arabia: Najran Cement has signed a deal for a US$85m six-year financing facility from Al Rajhi Bank. The producer says that its logistics unit will use the funds 'to endorse its core business activities.'

Saudi Arabia: Yamama Cement Company recorded net profits after Zakat and tax worth US$68.2m in 2022, a year-on-year increase of 132% from US$41m in 2021. Its revenues for 2022 amounted to US$272m in 2022, up by 39% from US$196m in 2021.

UK: Neville Roberts, a former Technical Director of Cemex UK, has died on 10 February 2023, at the age of 66. He was a notable figure in the alternative fuels sector for the cement industry.

Neville attended Holyhead County School 1969 - 1975, taking Maths, Physics and Chemistry 'A' Levels, as well as representing the school in rugby, football and athletics. Roberts trained as a chemical engineer at Loughborough University and had worked in the cement industry for over 35 years. During his career he started as a process engineer, became a plant manager at a number of cement plants around the world including Chelm, Poland, and was appointed to five director roles for three cement companies. The companies he worked for included Rugby Cement, Castle Cement, RMC, Cemex and Saudi Cement Company. His later roles for Cemex included UK Technical Director (2004 - 12) and Energy Business Development Director (2012 - 13). He worked in the UK, Poland and Saudi Arabia. After leaving Cemex, Roberts set up his own consultancy and later became the managing director for the UK of Netherlands-based N+P Alternative Fuels.

He was a passionate supporter of all things Welsh, especially rugby, and was awarded the Global CemFuels ‘Personality of the Year’ award in 2013. Neville was husband to Patricia, father to Katie and Holly and grandad to Martha, Edie and Albee. He was known to his grandkids as 'Wowo.' Neville Roberts was great company, mentored and influenced many colleagues around the world and will be sorely missed.