Displaying items by tag: Plant
Pakistan: The Sindh Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) has arranged hearings on 21 October 2020 over alleged environmental protection regulation violations by Dewan Cement and Lucky Cement at their respective Kamilpur and Karachi cement plants in the province. The provincial agency, “has expedited its monitoring activities throughout the province to manage different types of pollution at their source.”
Kilns break down at Akhangarancement and Almalyk Mining and Metallurgical Combine cement plants
21 October 2020Uzbekistan: Cement sales volumes has decreased by 29% to 5000t/day from 7000t/day at the Akhangarancement cement plant in Toshkent and by 55% to 5000t/day from 11,000t/day at the Almalyk Mining and Metallurgical Combine cement plant in Jizzakh. Uzbekistan Newsline has reported the cause of the decline as the breakdown of two kilns at the plants. This has led to a decrease in domestic cement production to 37,000t/day and sales to 35,000t/day, resulting in a slight price increase. Prices had previously been falling due to the effects of the post-coronavirus lockdown economic recovery.
JK Cement completes Katni wall putty plant expansion
20 October 2020India: JK Cement has increased the capacity of its Katni wall putty plant in Madhya Pradesh to 700,000t/yr from 400,000t/yr. Projects Today News has reported that the putty consists mainly of JK Cement white cement. The company now has a wall putty production capacity of 1.2Mt/yr.
18 injured in clash at Cemento Cruz Azul’s Oaxaca plant
16 October 2020Mexico: 18 people have been injured after representatives of Cemento Cruz Azul and police took control of the integrated 2.2Mt/yr Oaxaca plant in Lagunas. The La Jornada newspaper has reported that Cruz Azul’s directors José Antonio Marín and Víctor Manuel Velázquez entered the plant accompanied by security personnel in fulfilment of a court order before fighting broke out with cooperativist members of the organisation. Police arrested five members of the group, allegedly linked to a criminal organisation, while the Cruz Azul representatives successfully retook control of the plant.
Cooperativists restricted access to the plant in August 2020. The board of directors of Cruz Azul also asserted legal control of its Cementos y Concretos Nacionales (CYCNA) subsidiary cement plants in Puebla and Aguascalientes in September 2020.
Dalmia Cement’s Calcom plant received fly ash from Uttar Pradesh
15 October 2020India: Dalmia Cement has imported 3830t of fly ash from a National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) power plant in Uttar Pradesh for use at its 0.8Mt/yr-capacity integrated Calcom cement plant in Assam. United News of India has reported that the supplementary cementitious material (SCM) travelled over 1000km.
62.9GW-total capacity NTPC produces 65Mt/yr of fly ash, some of which is used by ACC at its cement plants in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab.
Cemex Zement launches Vision Rüdersdorf
14 October 2020Germany: Cemex Zement has announced the start of carbon-neutral building materials development at its 1.9Mt/yr Rüdersdorf, Brandenburg cement plant. Called Vision Rüdersdorf, the project consists of, “the comprehensive investigation of various approaches to breakthrough technologies in order to prevent process-related carbon dioxide (CO2) from entering the atmosphere, but to use it for beneficial purposes. The investigation areas can be divided into capture, storage or use of CO2. This will help towards Cemex’s target of 55% CO2 emissions reduction across Europe by 2030 and its commitment to deliver carbon-neutral concrete by 2050.
Chief executive officer (CEO) Rüdiger Kuhn said, “For years, sustainable success has been achieved here in the reduction of fossil fuels and in the selection of alternative recipe ingredients for cement. The experienced team is always looking for possible improvements. When it came to determining the best possible CO2 emission values, the Rüdersdorf plant was always at the forefront of the European cement industry and has thus also earned an excellent reputation in the global Cemex organisation.”
In order to realise Vision Rüdersdorf, the producer has partnered with companies from other industries. Managing director and plant manager Stefan Schmorleiz said, “In an interesting approach, the CO2 that we capture is used as a raw material for downstream processes in the chemical industry. Another approach is to innovate in the storage of CO2. With these efforts, and our commitment to review and invest in these technologies, Cemex Zement is making a contribution to the decarbonisation of the cement industry.”
LafargeHolcim faces US$270m compensation claim over violation of US sanctions in Cuba
12 October 2020Cuba/US: A court in Florida has accepted a request for damages worth US$270m from LafargeHolcim to over 20 parties from Cuba whose land was nationalised and subsequently had a cement plant built on it. The claim alleges that Switzerland-based Holderbank has held a stake in the partly-state owned Carlos Marx cement plant near Cienfuegos since 2001 via a deliberately “complex network of letterbox companies and transactions” in the Netherlands and Spain, according to the Tages Anzeiger newspaper. Holderbank later became Holcim and then LafargeHolcim.
The building materials producer’s alleged involvement may constitute a violation of the US embargo on trade with Cuba for companies active in the US. The claim has been aided by a clause in the US’s Cuban blockade law, activated by President Donald Trump, enabling Cubans to claim damages in US courts for expropriated property from private companies which profited from them.
China Machinery Engineering wins Erbil cement plant contract
09 October 2020Iraq: China-based China Machinery Engineering has secured a contract for the establishment of an integrated cement plant in Erbil, Kurdistan. Dow Jones Newswire Chinese News has reported that the plant is scheduled for completion in April 2023, at a total investment cost of US$210m.
Holcim US opens solar power plant at Hagerstown cement plant
09 October 2020US: LafargeHolcim subsidiary Holcim US has opened a 10MW solar power plant at its Hagerstown, Maryland cement plant in partnership with Greenbacker Renewable Energy Company. The producer says that the power plant will supply 25% of the cement plant’s energy needs, reducing its carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 12,400t/yr.
LafargeHolcim cement US operations chief executive officer (CEO) Jamie Gentoso said, “As solar technologies continue to improve, this abundant energy source stands out as both a sustainable and economical solution to follow through on our commitment to minimise emissions and reduce our carbon footprint. We already have access to large areas of land with a high concentration of sunlight, so utilising solar energy is an easy decision. As we strive toward becoming a net-zero company, clean energy is a key part of our strategy. We hope to install enough renewable energy to power all of our plants and give back to the surrounding communities by 2026; this new solar array is just the beginning for us.”
Portugal: Germany-based ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions has announced its appointment by Secil for modernisation of its 2.0Mt/yr Outão integrated cement plant. The supplier says that it will, “modify the existing rotary kiln and preheater tower, install a new AS-MSC calciner equipped with a Prepol SC-S calcining system to increase fuel flexibility and maximise the use of a wide range of alternative fuels (AF) with a minimum substitution rate of 85%.”
Additionally, a new Polytrack 7T/5-3R grate cooler, including a new cooler dedusting system, will replace the existing planetary cooler. The upgrade aims to “bring the plant to the highest energy efficiency, low nitrous oxides (NOx) and the lowest carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions among European cement producers” and is partly funded by the Portuguese government.
ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions chief executive officer (CEO) Samir Abi Ramia said, “This project marks a milestone for our Grey2Green initiative and is proof of the rising demand for green technologies in the cement industry. Secil is aware of the stakes for tomorrow and beyond and places great value on sustainability. With our energy-saving and emissions-reducing technologies, we are proud to play our part in the transition towards carbon-neutral cement production.” He added, “Secil can be confident that, with this investment, its Outão plant will rank among the top 10% of efficient cement plants in Europe.”