Global Cement News

UK: The Mineral Products Association (MPA) says it is disappointed that UK-based cement and lime producers have been excluded from the government’s compensation scheme for climate change costs. The association says that the government has, “missed an opportunity to support two essential industries during the current energy crisis, despite other industry sectors - which directly compete with cement and lime - receiving the compensation.”

Under the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) scheme, some energy intensive industries can apply for compensation from the indirect costs of the UK Emissions Trading Scheme (UK ETS) and Carbon Price Support (CPS) if they meet certain criteria. In the government’s 2021 consultation on the compensation mechanism, energy intensive industries needed to meet at least one of three tests to qualify. However, the MPA says that BEIS later changed this so that they had to pass all three tests and modified the targets.

Diana Casey, Director for Energy and Climate Change at the MPA, said “It is extremely disappointing that having met the criteria set out in the consultation, BEIS has decided to move the goalposts and exclude cement and lime from the scheme. UK manufacturers of all products face higher electricity and gas costs than European competitors, and this decision misses an opportunity to support the competitiveness of the UK cement and lime sectors, both essential foundation industries, especially during the current energy crisis and rapidly rising costs. Reaching net zero and delivering our economic potential requires huge investment from global businesses and it becomes harder to make the case for the UK as a location for such investment if policy costs make operating in the UK uncompetitive.”

US: Cemex USA has applied for a permit to continue mining at Dowe Flats to support operations at its integrated Lyons cement plant in Colorado. It has asked the Boulder County Community Planning and Permitting department to allow it continue mining for 15 years until 2037, according to the Daily Camera newspaper. It then says it will close the cement plant. Its existing mining permit will end later in 2022.

US: The Portland Cement Association (PCA) has received the 2022 Energy Star Partner of the Year award from the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy. This is the third year in a row that PCA has earned this award.

"We are proud to have won this award for the third consecutive year. This latest award confirms our commitment to reducing cement sector CO₂ emissions through longstanding, long-term efforts to improve energy efficiency," said Michael Ireland, president and chief executive officer of the PCA. "This award shows once again that the cement and concrete industries are leading the way toward a more sustainable future, even as demand for our products grows."

The 2022 Energy Star Partner of the Year Award follows the launch of PCA's Roadmap to Carbon Neutrality in October 2021. In addition to PCA's recognition, two member companies also earned awards. CalPortland and Cemex won Partner of the Year awards in the energy management category. This is the fifth year in a row that Cemex has won this award, and the 18th successive year for CalPortland.

Tajikistan: Data from the Agency for Statistics under the President of Tajikistan shows that cement production fell by 5.9% year-on-year to 0.97Mt in the first quarter of 2022 from 1.03Mt in the same period in 2021. The country produced over 4.2Mt of cement in 2021, according to Asia-Plus. However, in April 2022 the government set an export target of 2Mt/yr by 2024.

France: Vicat recorded first-quarter sales of Euro789m in 2022, up by 12% year-on-year from Euro707m in the first quarter of 2021. The group reported ‘solid’ year-on-year consolidated sales growth across all of its regions, with price rises offsetting negative volume effects. Cement sales grew by 7.4% in France, 4.1% in the rest of Europe, 18% in the US, 26% in Brazil and 8.5% in Africa. The Russian invasion of Ukraine did not manifest in any impacts on group activity in the quarter. Vicat estimates that in order to offset higher power costs it will need to raise its cement prices by 15% year-on-year in 2022 as a whole.

Group chair and chief executive officer Guy Sidos said “Vicat’s first-quarter sales performance reflects the dynamism of its markets, despite a high basis of comparison.” He continued “In a global environment providing little visibility in the short term, especially as regards energy costs, we are executing our strategy to improve our production performance, make greater use of secondary fuels and implement a pricing policy tailored to this new environment in pursuit of our operational, environmental and societal targets."