28 September 2016
FLSmidth and NHI Group sign joint-venture agreement for mining equipment 28 September 2016
China: FLSmidth and Northern Heavy Industries Group (NHI Group), based in Shenyang, have signed an agreement to enter into a joint-venture, with an equal amount of shares, for the design and supply of mining equipment targeting the mid-market segment. The joint venture will be established with its own board of directors and management under the name NHI-Fuller (Shenyang) Mining (NHI-Fuller), which will financially report results as part of the Minerals Division in FLSmidth. Subject to obtaining regulatory approval, it is anticipated that NHI-Fuller will be operational in the first quarter of 2017.
"In 2014, we announced that part of our strategy in the Minerals Division was to enter the expanding mid-market for mining equipment. With the NHI Group, we have now found a perfect industrial partner for this quest," said Group Executive Vice President of the Minerals Division in FLSmidth, Manfred Schaffer.
The NHI-Fuller products will be designed for the needs of mid-market or capital expenditure sensitive customers in the mining industry and will be marketed under the NHI-Fuller brand name. While the initial focus will be to supply crushing products, the goal of the joint venture will be to become the leading mid-market mining equipment supplier for other product lines as well.
Claudius Peters receives silo order from Cesla cement plant 28 September 2016
Russia: Claudius Peters has received an order to supply four silo conversions and a new loading plant, consisting of four loading bins at the 0.8Mt/yr Slantsev ‘Celsa’ cement plant near St Petersberg, owned by HeidelbergCement . As part of the modification works, the storage silos will be equipped with new bottom aeration and new discharge systems. The order is part of an upgrade to raise the plant’s production capacity to 1.2Mt/yr.
To convey the cement to the new loading plants, Claudius Peters will install two Fluidcon lines each, with a capacity of 300t/hour each, supplied with Claudius Peters X-pumps. Four truck loading plants with a capacity of 200t/hour will also be installed.
Qazax Sement Zavodu cement plant merges with concrete producer 28 September 2016
Azerbaijan: The Qazax Sement Zavodu LLC cement plant has merged with the Akkord Beton LLC concrete plant. The Ministry of Taxes of Azerbaijan reported the merger.
Nigeria: A new 2.5Mt/yr production line at the UNICEM Calabar cement plant is set to start production in October 2016. The subsidiary of LafargeHolcim will employ 1024 workers, comprising 539 expatriates and 485 local staff, according to Today Digital.
Eagle Cement to hold groundbreaking at Davao plant in October 2016 28 September 2016
Philippines: Eagle Cement plans to hold the groundbreaking ceremony for its 2Mt/yr plant at Davao on 20 October 2016. The US$300m project is intended to meet demand from infrastructure development near Manila, according to the Philippines News Agency. Ramon S Ang, the owner of Eagle Cement, said that the construction of the plant is part of a plan he announced earlier in 2016 for the cement producer to help support the country's growth while strengthening its position in the industry.
China: The China Cement Association has asked the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology to speed up the consolidation process in the local cement industry. According to documents seen by the South China Morning Post the cement body wants the ministry to consolidate at least 60% of the country’s cement production capacity into 10 producers by 2020. The association made its proposals in July 2016 and has since chased the ministry for a response.
Association data shows that China may have to cut 390Mt/yr of production capacity and cut 130,000 jobs in the next five years in order to maintain an adequate balance between supply and demand. Larger cement plants could also be required to exchange production quotas and seek cross holdings in equity stakes.
To aid the consolidation process, existing cement companies will pool together US$3bn in a restructuring fund. This is expected to aid the larger cement producers, including Anhui Conch, Huaxin Cement, Qilianshan Cement and Sichuan Shuangma Cement.