Nigeria: BUA Cement has announced plans to raise its total installed capacity to 20Mt/yr following the signing of an agreement with China-based CBMI Construction for the construction of a new 3Mt/yr cement production line in Sokoto State. The US$240m project will also include the construction of a power plant ‘and other key facilities,’ according to The Premium Times Nigeria. The agreement was signed in Dubai, UAE, by the chairs of both companies: Abdul Samad Rabiu of BUA Cement and Zhang Sicai of CBMI Construction. Rabiu said the expansion will ‘strengthen’ the company’s production base and intensify competition in the West African cement market.

He added that the new Sokoto line will be powered by BUA’s Kogi liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant in Ajaokuta, which broke ground in early 2025 and is scheduled for completion later in 2026. By using LNG, the company aims to cut operating costs while reducing reliance on more expensive and higher-emission traditional fuels. According to Rabiu, the plant is strategically located to serve northwestern Nigeria and neighbouring landlocked regional markets, such as Niger and Benin. He added that the project is expected to be completed within about 20 months.

Philippines: Cement manufacturers are ‘hopeful’ of a recovery in cement demand in 2026, with growth expected to be supported by government infrastructure projects, according to The Philippine Star. Cement Manufacturers Association of the Philippines (CeMAP) president John Reinier Dizon said the group expects demand to improve, although signs of a rebound have not yet materialised.

Dizon said that cement demand fell by around 3% in the fourth quarter of 2025. He said that allegations of corruption prompted the government to suspend some infrastructure works and implement stricter project validation in the third quarter of 2025. CeMAP reportedly expects cement demand to grow in line with the country’s GDP growth, and that the government is targeting economic growth of 5-6% in 2026, after average growth of about 5% from January to September 2025, below its earlier target of 5.5-6.5%.

India: UltraTech Cement has placed an order for seven vertical roller mills from Gebr. Pfeiffer as part of its ongoing capacity expansion programme across its plants. The order comprises one MVR 5600 R-6 mill for raw material grinding, two MPS 3750 BK mills for petcoke and coal grinding, and four MVR 6000 C-6 mills for cement grinding. According to the supplier, the MVR mills will be equipped with condition monitoring systems designed to support preventative, digitally controlled maintenance.

The project is being executed through close cooperation between Gebr. Pfeiffer (India) and Gebr. Pfeiffer SE in Germany. Engineering and project support are being led by the company’s team in Noida.

Canada: Quebec’s Ministry of the Environment has reportedly imposed fines totalling US$105,000 on Saint Marys Cement for air and water pollution breaches at its cement plant in Port-Daniel on the Gaspé Peninsula, according to newspaper Le Soleil. The violations relate to incidents recorded in 2020 and 2021. According to the ministry, checks carried out in February 2022 using company-supplied data found repeated breaches of permitted limits with respect to air and water pollution. Effluent from the plant’s sedimentation basin reportedly surpassed the authorised threshold of 30mg per litre of suspended matter on four occasions across the two years. In total, six instances were identified where monitored substances exceeded standards set out in the plant’s ministerial operating authorisation. Saint Marys Cement received a notice of non-compliance in March 2022. The notice required the company to take immediate corrective action to meet regulatory standards.

Similar shortcomings were also recorded in water-related data for the same period. In response to ongoing dust emission concerns, the ministry also issued a formal order in September 2022. Ghizlaine Behdaoui, spokesperson for the Ministry of the Environment, said "In order to ensure a rapid intervention in the face of the ongoing problem of dust emissions, in addition to criminal proceedings, the Ministry issued an order on 15 September 2022. We can confirm that since the issuance of the Minister's order until today [20 January 2026], according to the checks and inspections carried out, the company is complying with the requirements of the order."

Company spokesperson Justin Meloche said that the fines have been paid, and that the company has since invested more than US$65m to improve plant operations, including upgrades to inspection and maintenance practices and the implementation of corrective measures.