Global Cement Newsletter

Issue: GCW758 / 06 May 2026

Headlines


We have a potential acquisition to discuss this week in Sub-Saharan Africa. Heidelberg Materials is reportedly considering buying South Africa-based PPC. This marks a change to the recent trend of consolidation in core markets by western cement multinationals.

The detail, as reported by Bloomberg, is that Heidelberg Materials is in discussion with banks to appoint financial advisers in relation to a potential bid for PPC. No formal bid has been made at this stage and Heidelberg Materials has not commented. However, although PPC has not commented directly either, its CEO Matias Cardarelli previously said that “Against this backdrop, it would not be surprising if international cement players are beginning to view PPC as an increasingly attractive opportunity.” Heidelberg Materials joins other cement companies including AfriSam, CRH, Dangote Cement and Holcim in showing interest in PPC.

A key point to note here is that a Europe-based heavy building materials company is looking at buying assets outside of Europe or North America. Australia has been the focus of similar attention in recent years with acquisitions made by CRH, Heidelberg Materials and Holcim. Unlike Holcim though, Heidelberg Materials has retained operations in Sub-Saharan Africa, in West and East Africa respectively. Recent acquisitions in Africa include the purchase of a majority share of Morocco-based Asment in 2025, the purchase of a majority stake in

Tanzania-based Tanga Cement in 2023 and Morocco-based Cimsud in 2020. It sold its majority stake in Congo-based Cimenterie de Lukala to the WIH Cement Developing Company in 2025. It has also made some notable investments in its Africa-based portfolio, such as a large-scale calcined clay plant, in collaboration with CBI Ghana, which went into operation in mid-2025.

In addition to benefiting from the market in South Africa, buying PPC could also give Heidelberg Materials synergies with its current operations in Mozambique and Tanzania. In the former country it operates a grinding plant in Dondo, Sofala province. In the latter, it runs an integrated cement plant in Dar es Salaam and one in the north of the country. PPC,  meanwhile, runs an integrated plant and a grinding plant in Zimbabwe and a grinding plant in Botswana. All of this put together could potentially give Heidelberg Materials a complimentary network of operations in southern and eastern Africa.

Figure 1: Map showing presence of Heidelberg Materials in ‘emerging markets.’

Figure 1: Map showing presence of Heidelberg Materials in ‘emerging markets’ (green). Countries in which PPC operates (red). Recent acquisitions by Heidelberg Materials include: Semen Grobogan, Indonesia (A); Asment Témara, Morocco (B); and Tanga Cement, Tanzania (C). Source: Heidelberg Materials with additions by Global Cement.  

PPC appears to be spinning the reported attention by Heidelberg Materials as validation that its latest business strategy is working. Under the ‘Awaken the Giant’ plan, it is aiming to become the “leading cement leader in Southern Africa.” It has been able to reflect upon a strong set of financial results for the first 10 months of its financial year to the end of January 2026. Group revenue rose by 4% year-on-year, due to volume increases in Zimbabwe, compared to a slight fall in the 2025 financial year. Further financial gains are expected from the 2028 financial year onwards when the company’s new 1.5Mt/yr plant at its existing Western Cape site starts to enter commercial operation.

As ever with these kinds of market stories, it is uncertain to those on the outside of the offer process to work out when a particular deal becomes serious and how many other potential deals are also quietly being prepared for that we don’t hear about. As mentioned, PPC has been linked to a number of potential companies for merger and acquisition activity. Of these, the potential merger with AfriSam in the 2010s was probably the most prominent. In Africa the big names one might expect to be linked to a potential deal like this would be Dangote Cement and China-based Huaxin Cement. As for this potential deal, time will tell.


Germany: The German Cement Works Association (VDZ) has elected Dirk Spenner, Spenner Zement as its president. He succeeds Christian Knell, Heidelberg Materials, who has been in post since 2017. The board of the VDZ has also been preparing for a change in management at the organisation following the planned retirement of the current CEO Martin Schneider in November 2026. Manuel Mohr will become the new CEO of the VDZ. He is currently working as the Head of Political and Economic Affairs and the managing director of the InformationsZentrum Beton. He will lead the association together with Jörg Rickert, who will become Managing Director Technology. Rickert is currently the Managing Director VDZ Technology and Head of Cement Chemistry.


UK: The Mineral Products Association has appointed Sam Ghazizadeh as Technical Lead – Cement. He previously worked as a Materials Specialist for Mott MacDonald. Ghazizadeh holds a PhD in construction materials chemistry from University College London.


Finland: Tana has appointed Gerd Schreier as Vice President, Sales, Marketing & Channel Management. He will lead the company’s sales, marketing, and channel management functions. Schreier previously worked for Doppstadt and Liebherr. Olli Heinonen has also been appointed as Vice President, Product Marketing & Portfolio Strategy. He was previously working for Tana as Vice President of Sales and Marketing. Before this, he held roles with Metso and AGCO Corporation.


Germany: Heidelberg Materials said that it made a ‘robust’ start to the 2026 financial year, reporting sales of €4.54bn in the first quarter of 2026, down by 4% year-on-year. However, result from current operations fell from €235m to €163m. The company said that declining volumes were partly offset by price adjustments and cost discipline, and that it anticipates rising energy costs as a result of the escalation in the Middle East, which will be compensated for by surcharges and price adjustments. Heidelberg Materials confirmed its 2026 outlook, targeting result from current operations of €3.40bn-€3.75bn.

Chair of the managing board Dominik von Achten said “In a challenging geopolitical environment and under difficult weather conditions in many of Heidelberg Materials’ core markets, we have started the financial year 2026 with robust results. A significant recovery in demand is already visible in many markets at the start of the second quarter. For the remainder of the year, we anticipate demand in our core markets to further stabilise. Against this backdrop, we confirm our outlook for the financial year 2026.”


France: Heidelberg Materials France has commissioned a new dry kiln line at its Airvault cement plant in the New Aquitaine region, replacing two semi-dry clinker lines. The new line has a capacity of 1.25Mt/yr and will use a pre-calciner system, increasing alternative fuel use to around 90% and reducing electricity consumption per tonne of cement by 10%. The proportion of clinker in the cement will also be lowered through the new line, which will help to reduce CO₂ emissions by around 30% compared with previous production. The €350m project was partly funded by the French government and will also utilise calcined clay. A carbon capture, utilisation and storage project is also planned at the site, which will capture around 1Mt/yr of CO₂, and recently received a grant from the EU Innovation Fund.


India: Ambuja Cements reported net profit of US$193m in the fourth quarter of the 2026 financial year, up by 79% year-on-year. Sales rose by 10% to US$1.15bn. It reported earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) US$152m, representing a fall of 19%. Cement sales volumes increased by 10% to 19.9Mt, with total capacity reaching 109Mt/yr following commissioning of a 3Mt/yr clinker line at Jodhpur and trial of a 1.2Mt/yr grinding unit at Dahej.

The company said that the Indian cement sector is facing cost pressures from higher fuel and diesel prices, rising packaging costs and the depreciation of the rupee. The company said that capacity expansion plans are being ‘recalibrated’ in line with recent railway policies on bulk cement terminals, with additions pursued more gradually after achieving ‘optimal’ utilisation levels. It also said that demand growth is expected to remain soft at around 5%.


Cambodia: The Cambodian Minister of Industry, Science, Technology & Innovation Hem Vanndy visited Cambodia Cement’s Chakrey Ting plant in Kampot province on 4 May 2026. The plant is part of the Huaxin Industrial Park, and the minister encouraged Huaxin to expand investment and ‘explore new opportunities’ in Cambodia. He also encouraged company to advance research and development and expand into new construction materials, particularly those with high import demand, such as tiles and marble.

The minister said "Material science is critical to industrial development. We encourage Huaxin to work with the National Institute of Science, Technology and Innovation (NISTI) to invest in research and development, including waste management and innovative reuse of materials.”

Ke Hongwei, managing director of the park, said that the company reinvested in the plant in 2021 to modernise the facility and expand its operations.


Pakistan: Cement despatches reached 3.89Mt in April 2026, rising by 11% year-on-year, according to the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association. Domestic despatches increased by 20% to 3.22Mt during the month, while exports fell by 18% to 0.67Mt. In the first 10 months of the current financial year, total despatches rose by 10% to 42.4Mt, with domestic volumes up by 11% to 34.8Mt and exports up by 3% to 7.61Mt.

The figures surpass projections made in April 2026, based on data from the first 19 days of April 2026. The projection expected domestic despatches to increase by 10% year-on-year to 2.94Mt. Total cement despatches were projected to be around 3.61Mt. In the period covering the first 10 months of the fiscal year 2026, total cement despatches were anticipated to reach 42.1Mt.


Spain: Engineering and manufacturing firm Kemex-Ingesoa marked its 40th anniversary on 25 April 2026 and unveiled a new corporate logo at its headquarters in San Sebastián. The company said that the milestone reflects four decades of growth and transformation, supported by its integration within Vidmar Group and focus on future development and innovation. Kemex was bought in 2022 by Ingesoa, a historical competitor and materials handling equipment supplier.  


South Africa: Heidelberg Materials has reportedly entered talks with banks to appoint advisers, as it considers a potential acquisition of cement producer PPC, according to Engineering News. The company is assessing a full takeover of the South African cement producer as part of plans to expand its presence in Africa. However, Heidelberg Materials reportedly declined to comment and discussions are at an early stage. PPC is valued at US$560m and operates in Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe.


US: Titan’s subsidiary Titan America has completed the acquisition of cement and aggregates producer Keystone Cement in Pennsylvania, finalising three acquisitions that were announced from November 2025. The agreement with Keystone Cement was announced in January 2025. The Keystone Cement integrated plant has a clinker capacity of 0.9Mt/yr.

The two other acquisitions that closed in February 2026 and March 2026 respectively, were the Vracs de L’Estuaire grinding plant in France with 0.6Mt/yr clinker capacity and the Traçim Çimento integrated plant in Türkiye with a capacity of 2.5Mt/yr.


Europe: Cemvision and Mannok, part of Çimsa Group, have signed a memorandum of understanding to deploy ‘near-zero CO₂’ cement technologies. The partnership will focus on commercial rollout of Cemvision’s Re-ment Massive product and aims to establish a multi-year offtake agreement to support industrial scale-up. The partnership will also allow for expansion into the new markets of Italy, Spain and Türkiye, through the companies’ European and Mediterranean distribution network.

Oscar Hållén, CEO of Cemvision, said “Together, we are creating the conditions required to scale Re-ment Massive into multiple geographies. This partnership is about moving from innovation to industrial impact.”


Russia: Cement consumption in Russia could fall by up to 26% in 2026, according to Soyuzcement. The organisation said that consumption declined by 24% year-on-year to 8.30Mt in the first quarter of 2026, while consumption in March 2026 fell by 20% year-on-year despite a seasonal rise of 53% month-on-month.

Soyuzcement said that it expected a slowdown in the construction industry in the medium term. It said that a decrease in cement consumption in Russia of at least 20% was expected in 2026, with pessimistic forecasts of up to 26%.


Iraq/Syria: Iraq has begun to export cement to Syria through the al-Waleed border crossing on a trial basis, according to Iraq’s Border Ports Authority, with shipments entering gradually to test procedures and ensure smooth operations at border crossings. It said that shipment volumes are expected to increase progressively based on evaluations during the initial operational phase. Cement is also beginning to arrive at the al-Yarubiyah-Rabia crossing, as part of a plan to distribute trade flows across multiple crossings.

The Iraqi Ministry of Industry and Minerals said in mid-2025 that it is developing a plan to set up new cement plants with a production capacity of 52Mt/yr, reportedly to meet growing demand and support ongoing construction projects in Iraq.


Ireland: CRH reported sales of US$7.4bn in the first quarter of 2026, up by 9% year-on-year, driven by positive demand and contributions from acquisitions. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 18% year-on-year to US$600m. The company recorded a net loss of US$200m, compared to a net loss of US$100m in the first quarter of 2025, attributed to higher depreciation and increased expenses.

The Americas Materials Solutions division saw sales increase by 21% year-on-year and adjusted EBITDA up by 75%. Cement volumes were 10% ahead of the prior year. The Americas Building Solutions reported total revenues 1% behind the first quarter of 2025, driven by subdued residential demand and adverse weather conditions, and International Solutions reported revenues 5% higher than the first quarter of 2025 and EBITDA growth of 32%.

CRH said “We are reaffirming our financial guidance reflecting a strong start to the year as well as the net impact of divestitures and acquisitions agreed in the year to date. We continue to expect favourable underlying demand across our key-markets, underpinned by significant public investment in infrastructure and continued reindustrialisation activity.” Its 2026 outlook targets net income of US$3.9bn-US$4.1bn and adjusted EBITDA of US$8.1bn-US$8.5bn.


Spain: Molins reported sales of €268m in the first quarter of 2026, up by 8% year-on-year, despite a ‘global environment characterised by economic and geopolitical uncertainty.’ Earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 4% year-on-year to €54m. Adjusted EBITDA reached €90m, up by 8%, supported by contributions from joint ventures and the strong performance of consolidated businesses. The company said growth was driven by price management, efficiency gains and acquisitions, despite adverse weather conditions in Spain and Portugal and foreign exchange headwinds, such as in Argentina.

Molins completed the acquisition of Secil at the end of March 2026, increasing its net debt to around €1.40bn. The acquisition was funded through a €680m long-term loan and a €500m bridge loan. On a 2025 pro-forma basis, the combination of Molins and Secil reaches sales of €1.6bn and adjusted EBITDA of €534m.The acquisition is expected to generate positive results from the first year, the company said.

Molins CEO Marcos Cela said “In a still uncertain global context, we have started 2026 with solid operating performance, supported by price discipline, improved efficiency and the commitment of our teams. The completion of the Secil acquisition marks the beginning of a new chapter for Molins. Our focus now is on advancing the integration rigorously, ensuring business continuity and leveraging our increased scale and a more balanced footprint to accelerate our sustainable growth agenda and long-term value creation.”


Portugal: KHD Humboldt Wedag has achieved the first kiln firing and completed cold commissioning of Line 7 at Cimpor’s Alhandra cement plant. The company said in a post to Linkedin that that the upgrade includes installation of KHD’s Pyrorotor alternative fuel combustion reactor at one of the world’s oldest continuously operating cement plants. The company is now working on hot commissioning at the plant and production of the first clinker.


Morocco: Cement sales in Morocco fell by 11% in the first quarter of 2026, following a rise of 5% in the same period of 2025, according to a recent economic outlook report by The Directorate of Studies and Financial Forecasts. It said that cement deliveries rose by 3% in March 2026, after a fall of 13% in March 2025, indicating a return to growth despite weaker quarterly performance.


Vietnam: Vietnam exported 9.99Mt of cement and clinker in the first quarter of 2026, up by 21% year-on-year. These exports generated US$360m, also up by 21% year-on-year. The Philippines remained the largest export market with 801,000t, down by 61% compared to the first quarter of 2025, followed by Bangladesh with 903,000t, down by 45%. Exports to Malaysia rose by 29% to 487,000t, while shipments to Taiwan fell by 10% to 280,000t.


France: Lafarge will appeal its conviction for financing terrorist groups in Syria, following a ruling by the Paris Criminal Court ruling on 13 April 2026. According to the Paris Court of Appeal prosecutor’s office, the company and eight co-defendants, including former CEO Bruno Lafont, have filed appeals against the verdict. The court found that Lafarge had paid nearly €5.6m to armed groups, including ISIS, between 2013 and 2014 to maintain operations at its cement plant in Jalabiya, northern Syria.

The court fined the company €1.13m, the maximum penalty for the charge, and imposed a customs fine of €4.57m, for ‘violating international sanctions.’ Former CEO Bruno Lafont received a six-year prison sentence. He is currently being held at a Paris prison, where his request for release is set to be reviewed on 4 May 2026, according to French news channel BFMTV. Other defendants received prison sentences ranging from 18 months to seven years, including a Syrian intermediary who reportedly remains at large.


US: Amrize reported sales of US$2.18bn in the first quarter of 2026, up by 5% year-on-year. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 10% to US$192m. The company said that growth was driven by higher cement and aggregates volumes, with cement volumes rising by 14% to 4.10Mt and aggregates volumes up by 14% to 17.8Mt. Building Materials sales rose by 13% to US$1.50bn, while segment EBITDA increased by 42% to US$170m. It sold 4.1Mt of cement in the first quarter of 2026, representing a 14% year-on-year increase from 3.6Mt. Amrize said that cement price increases were put in place in April 2026, as well as fuel surcharges to offset cost inflation.

Amrize confirmed its 2026 outlook, targeting sales of US$12.3bn-US$12.5bn and adjusted EBITDA of US$3.25bn-US$3.34bn.

CEO Jan Jenisch said “While this is a seasonally small quarter for Amrize, we are encouraged by our progress and the acceleration of customer demand in Building Materials. With growing new project starts and multi-year supply agreements for mega-projects, we achieved double-digit volume growth in cement and aggregates. Our Building Materials business is well positioned for 2026 and we are well positioned to capitalise on accelerating customer demand and deliver profitable growth.”


Sweden: SaltX Technology and Holcim have produced Portland-quality clinker using a fully electrified process, following industrial-scale testing at SaltX’s test and research centre in Hofors, Sweden. Holcim’s cement raw meal was calcined using only electricity and then sintered using SaltX’s new electric clinker reactor. The company says it eliminates the need for a fossil-fuel powered kiln and demonstrates a ‘fundamentally new approach’ to cement production. The resulting clinker reportedly meets industrial quality requirements.

CEO of SaltX Lina Jorheden said “This marks a major step forward in demonstrating that a fully electrified cement process is not only possible but can be implemented in an industrial setting. Electrifying both calcination and sintering is key to enabling this shift, and the results demonstrate a new approach to cement production.”

Head of Holcim MAQER Ventures Bengt Steinbrecher said “SaltX demonstrated that their electrification solution is able to produce clinker of Portland quality. This is a strong validation of their technology and an important step on the industrial scale-up roadmap for future cement production.”

The results are a step forward toward the planned pilot plant. SaltX will provide further updates about the development as the project progresses.


Global: Heidelberg Materials will scale deployment of autonomous heavy mobile equipment across its global operations, targeting around 30 vehicles in 2026. The rollout will extend to six sites and two vehicle types in North America, Australia and Europe. It follows earlier deployment of an autonomous haulage system (AHS) at its Lake Bridgeport quarry in Texas.

In North America, Heidelberg Materials is extending its AHS programme to sites in Indiana and Texas. In Australia, the company is launching its first AHS projects at quarries in New South Wales and Western Australia. In Europe, Heidelberg Materials is trialling an autonomous wheel loader at a sand and gravel pit in Northern Germany.

The company said the systems use sensors, cameras and AI to autonomously operate the equipment in complex, dynamic environments to improve safety and operational performance. Heidelberg Materials plans to deploy more than 100 autonomous vehicles by 2028 as part of a broader initiative.


Jamaica: The kiln upgrade at Caribbean Cement failed to lift output past 1Mt in 2025, as production declined to below 2020 levels, according to The Gleaner, citing the company’s annual report. The kiln was commissioned in April - May 2025, but Hurricane Melissa struck in October 2025, leading to temporary disruptions. The company reported cement production of 864,000t in 2025, down from 870,000t in 2024. However, managing director of Caribbean Cement Jorge Alejandro Martínez Mora said that the kiln project “fully achieved, and in some cases exceeded, its objectives related to safety, cost, schedule, emissions compliance and production performance, increasing clinker capacity to 2850t/day.”

The company said that the US$42m debottlenecking project was intended to improve output from 1Mt/yr to 1.3Mt/yr, but hurricanes in both 2024 and 2025 had disrupted operations and limited output. It also said that going forward, operations could see ‘uncertainty’, with higher input costs due to the Iran war, which had ‘significantly disrupted global oil and gas supplies’. Caribbean Cement reportedly spent US$27m on fuel and electricity in 2025. However, it said that the domestic market was expected to remain ‘relatively resilient.’