Displaying items by tag: India

India: Ambuja Cements and ACC, LafargeHolcim’s local subsidiaries, have started supplying oxygen concentrators, cylinders and generating plants in various locations to help the government as it tackles a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic.

In Rajasthan, Ambuja Cements is setting up an oxygen generating plant at the JLN Hospital in Nagaur with a capacity of 40 - 50m³, with daily refilling of around 175 - 200 cylinders. The process to set up the oxygen plant has commenced and should be ready around the end of May 2021. In addition to setting up the plant, Ambuja Cements and ACC, have placed an order to procure 100 oxygen concentrators, each with a capacity of 10l/minute. These will be supplied to communities of three districts in Rajasthan - Bundi, Pali and Nagaur - where cement plant of both companies are located at Lakheri, Rabriyawas and Mundwa.

In Gujarat Ambuja Cements has installed an oxygen generating plant at Ambujanagar Multi-Specialty Hospital. The oxygen generating unit has a capacity of 35 - 40 cylinders/day at the flow rate of 10Nm3/hr and has been set up in two weeks.

Neeraj Akhoury, the chief executive officer of LafargeHolcim India, said “Community well-being has always been our priority, and it takes precedence as India bravely fights the second wave of the pandemic. In the current situation, oxygen supply is critical to combat the effects of Covid-19 and through setting up an oxygen generating plant, we aim to extend our support to the community members and local authorities.”

Other similar schemes to supply oxygen and related equipment are being prepared in Dehli, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, according to the Press Trust of India.

India: Dalmia Bharat’s consolidated revenue rose by 9% year-on-year to US$1.43bn in its 2021 financial year from US$1.31bn in the same period in 2020. During the period, which ended on 31 March 2021, its sales volumes of cement grew by 7% to 20.7Mt from 19.3Mt. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 32% to US$377m from US$285m.

Puneet Dalmia, the managing director of Dalmia Bharat said, “I am delighted with our company’s performance this year. The performance is backed by broad-based revenue growth of 9.0% across each region of our operation and EBITDA margin expansion. Through a much disciplined execution, we have successfully increased our capacity by 16% while simultaneously pre-paying our gross debt.”

India: Ambuja Cement, part of LafargeHolcim, reported a 71% jump year-on-year in its consolidated net profit to US$127.9m during the first quarter of 2021, compared to a profit of US$74.8m in the same period of 2020. Managing Director Neeraj Akhoury said, "Indian demand growth has been strong in the last quarter, which has also helped the sales volume growth and commercial performance.”
Akhoury added that, despite strong and continuing headwinds with regards to input prices, including coal, petcoke and diesel, the company had made significant progress on efficiency improvement, which had a positive impact on cost evolution.

India: The Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board (APPCB) has issued Zuari Cements’ Kapada cement plant with a closure order. The order follows an alleged failure to conform to a previous environmental order from the APPCB. The Indian Express newspaper has reported that, pursuant to the order, the board has requested police to cut off the power supply to the integrated cement plant.

India: Shiva Cement’s consolidated net sales in the 2021 financial year, which ended on 31 March 2020, were US$3.81m. The figure represents a 12% year-on-year decline from US$4.33m. Net loss also fell, by 4% to US$2.94m from US$3.05m.

India: Road Transport and MSME Minister Nitin Gadkari says that ‘huge demand’ is being created for steel and cement companies due to the rapid construction of road infrastructure. However, he also accused the industries of creating cartels and exploiting people, according to the Press Trust of India. The minister said that the government is now looking for some alternative for steel and cement. At a webinar Gadkari said that road construction has reached 37km/day day.

India: The board of directors of Sagar Cements is considering merging its wholly-owned subsidiary Sagar Cement (R) (SCR) into the company. A meeting has been scheduled for the company’s board of directors to consider the matter in late April 2021. SCRL, formerly BMM Cements, operates the 1.0Mt/yr Yadiki Mandalam cement plant in Anantapur district, Andhra Pradesh.

India: Larsen & Toubro has won a contract for the construction of a 3.5Mt/yr-capacity integrated cement plant at Nimbahera in Rajasthan. The Press Trust of India newspaper has reported that the supplier classed the order’s value as ‘significant,’ meaning between US$134m and US$336m.

India: Ambuja Cement has successfully sent two cement shipments to their destinations using biofuel-powered ships. Two of the company’s cement carriers delivered cement in India while running using biofuel derived from soya extract.

The biodiesel blend (B20) was in compliance with International Maritime Organisation sulphur content requirements and met International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) levels in terms of flash point requirements. No increase of NOx was observed with biodiesel blend as compared to low sulphur high-speed diesel (LSHSD), rather the emission level was found to be less. The reduction in CO₂ was found to be around 7% and the total life cycle reduction of CO₂ by life cycle analysis was measured to be around 21%, as the biodiesel from soya extract had a reduction of life cycle greenhouse gas emissions by 70%.

Following the successful initiative, the Directorate General of Shipping has approved biofuels trials for the rest of Ambuja Cement’s fleet, which are mainly deployed on the Indian coastal route.

India: Ambuja Cement, part of Switzerland-based LafargeHolcim, plans to commission its upcoming Mundwa cement plant in Rajasthan by September 2021. The plant will have a total capacity of 5Mt/yr, consisting of 3Mt/yr of integrated and 2.0Mt/yr of grinding capacity. The Hindu newspaper has reported that the company aims to achieve 50Mt/yr total installed capacity in the medium term. It said that it is evaluating possible plant upgrades at Bhatapara in Chhattisgarh and Maratha in Maharashtra.