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Dangote appoint Douraid Zaghouani as non-executive director
Written by Global Cement staff
13 May 2015
Nigeria: Dangote Cement has appointed Douraid Zaghouani as a non-executive director with effect from 29 April 2015. Zaghouani holds a degree in Civil Engineering from École Nationale des Travaux Publics de l'État in France and is also a graduate in Business Administration from the École Supérieure des Sciences Commerciales business school in Paris.
Zaghouani is presently the Chief Operating Officer of the Investment Corporation of Dubai (ICD). In this role, he supports the CEO's Office in corporate strategy development and is responsible for the efficient operational management of the organization.
Co-processing cashews
Written by Amy Saunders, Global Cement
13 May 2015
At the 24th AFCM Technical Symposium in April 2015, Nguyen Quoc Thang, plant manager at Vicem's Binh Phuoc cement plant, delivered an outstanding presentation. He explained the sourcing and processing methods for using cashew nut shells as an alternative fuel to replace coal at the plant.
Around 300,000t/yr of cashews are grown and harvested in the south-east of Vietnam, the equivalent of about 130,000t/yr of cashew nut shell, 85% of which remains after processing. According to Nguyen Quoc Thang, the plant uses cashew nut shells to replace 35% of its fuel and has significantly reduced its CO2 emissions and fuel costs by doing so.
Cashew nuts are grown in large quantities in Brazil, India, Nigeria, Vietnam, the Ivory Coast, Pakistan and Indonesia, among others. In 2012, some 4.15Mt of cashew nuts were grown. Cashew nut demand has risen greatly in both the long-term and the more recent past. New (and delicious) products are being designed to meet the demands of health-conscious people and vegans, including cashew nut butters, cashew milks, cashew cream, cashew ice cream, cashew cheese and cashew cooking sauces. All at premium prices, of course, and all driving cashew nut demand ever-higher.
Cashew nuts are always sold pre-shelled, as the shell is toxic if consumed. Their growing production volumes and the necessity that they always be pre-shelled for sale or further processing makes cashew nuts an ideal alternative fuel for cement production, with reliable supplies guaranteed for the foreseeable future, subject to good crop yields. Moreover, cashew nuts are mainly grown in regions that currently have low cement plant alternative fuel substitution rates, providing an instant solution to some of the cement industry's environmental challenges.
Cement producers in cashew nut-growing (and other types of nut) countries would do well to note the example that Vicem's Binh Phuoc cement plant has presented. In addition to saving costs and tackling environmental restrictions, the highly-profitable nut industries could provide extra economic value to their home countries through partnership with local cement plants.
Nigeria: The chairman of Ashaka Cement, Mallam Suleiman Yahyah, has said that the performance of the company in 2014 showed the resilience of the management and commitment of its parent firm, Lafarge Africa, to sustenance of investment in the north eastern part of the country. Despite losing US$7.54m to insurgents attack in 2014, Ashaka Cement ended the year with a profit after tax of US$22.9m, up from US$14.2m in 2013.
"We have embarked on the expansion of our cement production capacity to 4Mt/yr. The expansion will comprise debottlenecking of the existing line and installation of new line," said Yahyah. He added that Ashaka Cement's target is to achieve 95% coal substitution and to introduce a major corporate social responsibility (CSR) schemes that will help the community with agricultural development.
Cimerwa launches new corporate identity brand 12 May 2015
Rwanda: Cimerwa has unveiled its new corporate identity and product packaging. The new identity uses bold blue 32.5 bags and bright red 42.5 bags.
"We have moved from the previous green to a bold blue reflecting the refreshing nature of the business as we go through a rebirth and repositioning of Cimerwa. The previous logo was a closed diamond; the new logo is open, symbolising the bright future of the company and the journey we will be making together towards the top," said Legodi Busisiwe, Cimerwa CEO.
Cimerwa is finalising work on its new state-of-the-art production facility in Bugarama, Rusizi. The plant, which will boost Cimerwa's manufacturing capacity by six times, will commence production early in the second half of 2015. When fully operational, the plant's production capacity will increase from the current 100,000t/yr to 600,000t/yr.
Legodi said that construction of the plant in Bugarama is now complete and is undergoing structured tests in line with global best practice in the cement manufacturing sector. "The testing phase, which is the most important in preparing the plant for production, will take at least two months. Our aim is to certify that the new plant operates efficiently and effectively when it is running fully and produce a quality cement to meet Rwanda's growing demand," said Busisiwe.
According to Francois Kanimba, the minister for trade and industry, Rwanda's industrial and construction sectors are expected to register strong performances by the end of 2015. "Construction and real estate are key sectors and potential major drivers of future economic growth in Rwanda, mainly due to the high demand for residential and commercial buildings," said Kanimba. "Statistics from the Rwanda Development Board puts total housing needs in Kigali alone at 458,265 dwelling units. The government is keen to develop home-grown industries that will offer locally-made, world class products and, in the process, reduce the large bill we spend on imports."
90% of Egyptian cement plants agree to use coal 12 May 2015
Egypt: 90% of cement plants have agreed to use coal to increase their cement production, according to Egypt's Industrial Development Authority.
The authority is facilitating plant upgrades to enable coal use and ensuring that the necessary quantities of coal can be supplied, according to the head of the Industrial Development Authority, Ismail Gaber. He added that Egypt needs more than 32Mt/yr of cement to meet the needs of the domestic market.
In light of the population increase, the demand on energy has significantly increased in Egypt in recent years. The government agreed to include coal in the cement industry energy system in April 2014. Prior to that, coal was used only in the iron and steel, coke and aluminium industries. It is now also allowed to be used for electricity and cement production.