Vietnam: Vietnam produced 73.4Mt of cement in the first five months of 2025, up by 13% year-on-year, according to the National Statistics Office. In May 2025, output reached 17.3Mt, marking a 25% year-on-year rise. In 2024, Vietnam produced 184Mt of cement, up by 3.5% year-on-year.
Ozinga breaks ground on East Chicago alternative cement grinding plant
US: Ozinga has broken ground on a 1Mt/yr alternative cement grinding plant in East Chicago, Indiana. The plant is equipped with a Gebr. Pfeiffer MVR5300-C6 vertical roller mill. It will produce ASTM C989-compliant slag cement and other blended cements. When operational in 2026, it will be the largest of its kind in North America, and avoid 700,000t/yr of CO₂ emissions from conventional cement production. Its location offers strategic rail, road and shipping access to large markets in the US and Canada.
East Chicago Mayor Anthony Copeland welcomed an anticipated 150 new jobs resulting from construction and subsequent operations at the plant.
Attock Cement auction attracts five potential bidders
Pakistan: Five companies have signalled interest in bidding for Attock Cement. These include Alpha Cement Company, Bestway Cement and Cherat Cement Company, along with military investment fund Fauji Foundation and utilities provider Kot Addu Power Company. Pakistan Today News has reported that Fauji Foundation and Kot Addu Power Company’s plans consist of a joint acquisition of 84% of Attock Cement, followed by a mandatory public offer for the free float. Alpha Cement Company, meanwhile, may seek to buy as much as 92%, through a follow-on offer.
Attock Cement commands 3Mt/yr of capacity in South Pakistan, reportedly an increasingly attractive region, amid the on-going ‘revival’ of exports from Karachi port.
Alpha Cement Company was incorporated in Karachi in November 2024.
Ibstock seeking industrial partner for calcined clay project
UK: Clay brick and concrete products producer Ibstock is seeking an industrial partner for a ‘major’ calcined clay cement plant in the UK.
The group has identified a large reserve of high-kaolin clay at one of its operating brick clay quarries in central England. The site is a fully-consented quarry, with sufficient calcinable material to support calcined clay production for more than 25 years. ‘Extensive’ drilling and industrial trials have been completed to confirm the reserves and the reactivity of the calcined clay for use in low-carbon cement production.
Ibstock says that is looking at an industrial partner to collaborate on the design, construction and commercialisation of the project. It is open to exploring optimal investment and partnership models to fully realise the potential of the site.
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