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FCT Combustion report burner orders in the US 20 May 2016
US: FCT Combustion has announced new orders in the US. The Graymont lime plant in Pleasant Gap, Pennsylvania has ordered two low NOx Gyro-Therm MKII burning systems for coal, natural gas and solid alternative fuels firing. The Lehigh Cement plant in Redding, California has ordered a Turbujet burner for coal, petcoke, natural gas and solid wastes firing. No value for either order was released.
Philippines: Ernesto Ordoñez, the president Ernesto Ordoñez Cement Manufacturers Association of the Philippines (CEMAP), has said sales in the first three months of 2016 rose by 13% year-on-year to 6.43Mt in the first three months of 2016 from 5.7Mt in the same period in 2015. It was driven by strong construction activity in the country according to the Philippines Star newspaper.
“Demand will continue to be strong, especially with presumptive president Duterte saying that infrastructure will remain a high priority during his administration,” said Ordoñez. He added that the local cement industry benefitted from the higher infrastructure budget being allocated for the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). CEMPA forecast that construction growth in both the pubic and private sectors will remain strong in 2016.
India: The Calcutta High Court has dismissed two petitions by members of the Birla family intending to challenge the takeover of Reliance Infrastructure by Birla Corporation. Justice Jyotirmoy Bhattacharya held that the petitions were not maintainable stating that decisions taken by the directors could not be called into question by the probate court.
The challenge by the Birla family represents the latest move in a long-running legal battle between the family and accountant R S Lodha, father of the current chairman of Birla Corporation. The cement company announced in February 2016 that it was planning to buy Reliance Infrastructure for US$715m.
Indonesia: A joint venture between the State Development and Investment Corp (SDIC) and Anhui Conch Cement Company will start production at its 1.5Mt/yr plant in Manokwari, West Papua in July 2016. Hu Xiaohong, PT Conch-SDIC Papua Cement Indonesia’s head of general affairs, said that the first phase of the US$400m plant was nearly complete, in comments reported upon by the Jakarta Post.
Georgia: HeidelbergCement Caucasus has announced that it will spend US$120m on upgrading its Kaspi cement plant in the Shida Kartli region. HeidelbergCement will work with the Georgian Co-Investment Fund (GCF) and Hunnewell Partners, a private equity firm, on the project, according to government news source Agenda.ge.
Most of the budget will be spent on building a new dry cement production line at the site. The remainder will be invested towards developing the plant’s supporting network of ready-mix concrete and aggregate plants. Construction will start in July 2016 with completion intended for mid-2018. The three companies also said that they are investigating expanding their production base in west Georgia after completing the Kaspi plant expansion project.
Heidelberg Cement started operating in Georgia in 2006 after it acquired a stake of 75% in SaqCementi. It operates two integrated cement plants in Kaspi and Rustavi, a grinding plant in Poti and a cement terminal in Supsa.