Peru: National cement despatches reached 0.97Mt in December 2024, a 0.1% year-on-year increase, according to the Cement Producers Association (Asocem). Total despatches in 2024 were nearly 12Mt, marking just a 0.01% rise compared to 2023, indicating stagnation in the sector.

Asocem members produced almost 0.92Mt of cement in December 2024, a 1% year-on-year decrease, and recorded a 3% decline in 2024 to 11Mt. Cement exports from members rose by 70% year-on-year in December 2024 to 0.13Mt, but fell by 8% for the full year. Imports increased to 3000t in December 2024, up by 22% year-on-year, and grew by 29% over 2024, with Chile as the sole supplier.

Clinker production by Asocem members dropped by 30% year-on-year in December 2024 to 0.66Mt, and by 8% over the 2024 period. No clinker was exported by Asocem members, a 100% year-on-year decrease from December 2023. Clinker imports surged by 376% year-on-year in December 2024 to 0.2Mt, sourced from South Korea (44%), Japan (24%), Ecuador (19%) and Turkey (13%).

South Africa: PPC has partnered with Sinoma Overseas Development to build a US$159m, 1.5Mt/yr cement plant at an existing site in Western Cape. The plant will supply customers in Western Cape, Eastern Cape, and Northern Cape. This comes after PPC and Sinoma signed a 'strategic co-operation agreement' in July 2024 that would see them partner with each other to identify new projects and opportunities to improve the efficiency of PPC's operations.

Equipped with solar power and ‘the latest’ technology, the facility will reportedly improve energy efficiency, reduce coal consumption and lower emissions per tonne of cement produced, contributing to reduced production costs.

Over the next three months, the parties will finalise the scope and final assessment of the new plant, as well as the associated turn-key engineering, procurement and construction agreements. Construction of the new plant is expected to begin in the second quarter of 2025, with the plant commissioned by the end of 2026.

PPC CEO Matias Cardarelli said "With this new and most advanced energy and environmentally efficient plant in the country, we will be able to supply our customers with lower-carbon cement at a more competitive cost.”

Türkiye: According to the Turkish Ministry of Trade, Türkiye's global cement exports declined by 6.2% in 2024 to US$4.3bn, with exports in December 2024 amounting to US$341m, a 3% year-on-year decrease. Cement exports over the 12-month period from December 2023 to December 2024 also stood at US$4.3bn.

Cement exports from Türkiye to Kyrgyzstan also dropped in 2024, by 86% year-on-year, amounting to US$3.9m. However, December 2024 exports to Kyrgyzstan rose 7.2% year-on-year to US$751,065.

Europe: Capsol Technologies has been awarded an engineering services agreement for a pre-FEED (front-end engineering design) study on its CapsolEoP carbon capture technology at a cement plant in Europe, aiming to capture 600,000t/yr of CO₂.

Johan Jungholm, chief of business development at Capsol Technologies, said "We are building on our commercial traction within cement, where Capsol has emerged as a preferred carbon capture technology provider. CapsolEoP can operate with up to 50% lower energy use than traditional post-combustion technologies such as amines. This, together with reduced complexity, has the potential of reducing levelised capture costs by 20-60% for cement plant owners looking to decarbonise their operations.”