03 July 2015
Russian plant elects board chairman 03 July 2015
Russia: The Board of Directors of Verkhnebakanskiy Cement Works elected Lev Kvetnoy as Chairman of the Board of Directors on 1 July 2015.
India: Dalmia Cement Bharat says that it is engaging with dealers in the Maharashtra region to market its new 'superior grade' Dalmia Ultra Cement. "Dalmia Cement is engaging with over 800 dealers in the region, who will be supported with marketing, technical and logistics support," said the company in a statement. Group CEO Mahendera Singhi said that the launch would 're-define product quality parameters,' in the market.
Dalmia Cement Bharat started operations at its greenfield cement plant in Belgaum district, Karnataka in March 2015. The US$205m plant has a total capacity of 2.5Mt/yr and caters to the needs of customers in Maharashtra and Karnataka.
Cemex to expand social responsibility schemes 03 July 2015
South America/Asia: Mexican cement company Cemex has confirmed plans to expand its social responsibility programme to Guatemala, Bangladesh and the Philippines by 2016. The firm intends to installed self-employment production centres (CPA) in these countries to help low-income families renovate their houses.
The initiative, developed in collaboration with authorities and non-governmental organisations, provides construction training and teaches how to manufacture concrete blocks. Half of the production obtained at these centres is used in the construction or renovation of the participants' houses and the other half is bought by local governments to develop infrastructure projects. The income achieved by the initiative is then reinvested by Cemex in the centres.
Cemex already operates 80 CPAs in Mexico and expects to open 20 additional centres in 2015. It has also developed the initiative in Colombia since 2010.
Pioneer signs waste heat recovery deal with CITIC 03 July 2015
Pakistan: Pioneer Cement has signed an agreement with CITIC Heavy Industries, China to purchase a 12MW Waste Heat Recovery (WHR) system. The company's plant is located at Chenki, District Khusshab, in the heart of Punjab Province, 250km from Lahore. According to the company notice sent to the Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE), the total estimated cost of the plant is US$14.7m.
US cement production up year-on-year in April 2015 03 July 2015
US: The United States Geological Survey (USGS) has reported that total Portland and blended cement shipments in the USA and Puerto Rico came to 7.7Mt in April 2015, a 4.1% rise compared to April 2014. In the first four months of 2015, shipments rose by 5.1% to 24.1Mt. As previously, the leading cement-producing states were Texas, California, Missouri, Florida and Alabama.
Clinker production in April 2015 was 6.1Mt, a rise of 6.4% year-on-year. Production of clinker in the four months to 30 April 2015 rose by 7.7% from the same period of 2014 at 21.6Mt.