India: UltraTech Cement is querying the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) why its bid for Binani Cement had been rejected. The auction for the bankrupt Binani Cement was won by a consortium consisting of Dalmia Bharat and Bain Capital’s India Resurgent Fund and Piramal Enterprises, according to the Business Standard newspaper. UltraTech Cement is questioning how the bid selection process was conducted.

Although JSW Cement won the first round of bidding, the NCLT decided to ask for more bids. Bidders were then informed that their bids would be assessed using a weighted system that would consider each company’s background, experience and upfront cash to be paid to the secured lenders.

Laos: Lao Cement has started trading on the Lao Securities Exchange. It celebrated its first day of trading on the stock exchange on 2 March 2018, according to the Xinhua news agency. The cement producer is a joint venture between the Chinese and Lao governments.

Vietnam: Tata International Singapore has signed a memorandum of understanding with Vissai Cement Group to form a joint venture company in to use the port of Vinh. The deal is expected to create a distribution network for coal, according to the Press Trust of India. The company will also be responsible for Vissai Cement’s coal imports. The joint-venture is expected to benefit from the port’s location as a key gateway for trade into and out of Laos.

Vietnam: Xuan Thanh has hired Denmark’s FLSmidth to provide five onsite advisors with the purpose of optimising the production of its cement plant while minimising the production costs. The customer's 12,500t/day cement plant is located in Ha Nam, Vietnam, and is the largest cement plant in South East Asia. FLSmidth has also supplied the equipment for the cement plant since 2017.

"By implementing best practices and data from other cement plants globally, we can assist Xuan Thanh in improving their output while minimising their production costs. In other words we will enhance their productivity. This contract is a continuation of the long-standing partnership between Xuan Thanh and FLSmidth and will optimise the production of high quality cement to the local market," said Per Mejnert Kristensen, Group Executive Vice President, Cement Division of FLSmidth.