Displaying items by tag: Water
Update on Pakistan, April 2024
24 April 2024Changes are underway in South Asia’s second largest cement sector, with two legal developments that affect the industry set in motion in the past week. At a national level, the Competition Commission of Pakistan recommended that the government require cement producers to include production and expiry dates on the labels of bagged cement. Meanwhile, in Pakistan’s largest province, Punjab, a new law tightened procedures around the establishment and expansion of cement plants. At the same time, the country’s cement producers began to publish their financial results for the first nine months of the 2024 financial year (FY2024).
During the nine-month period up to 31 March 2024, the Pakistani cement industry sold 34.5Mt of cement, up by 3% year-on-year. Producers have responded to the growth with capacity expansions, including the launch of the new 1.3Mt/yr Line 3 of Attock Cement’s Hub cement plant in Balochistan on 17 April 2023. China-based contractor Hefei Cement Research & Design executed the project, including installation of a Loesche LM 56.3+3 CS vertical roller mill, giving the Hub plant a new, expanded capacity of 3Mt/yr.
Pressure has eased on the operating costs of Pakistani cement production, as inflation slowed and the country received a new government in March 2024, following political unrest in 2022 and 2023. Coal prices also settled back to 2019 levels, after prolonged agitation. Pakistan Today News reported the value of future coal supply contracts as US$93/t for June 2024, down by 2% over six months from US$95/t for January 2024.
Nonetheless, cost optimisation remained a ‘strong focus’ in the growth strategy of Fauji Cement, which switched to using local and Afghan coal at its plants during the past nine months. Its reliance on captive power rose to 60% of consumption, thanks to its commissioning of new waste heat recovery and solar power capacity. During the first nine months of FY2024, the company’s year-on-year sales growth of 14% narrowly offset cost growth of 13%, leaving it with net profit growth of 1%.
Looking more closely, the latest sales data from the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA) shows a stark divergence within cement producers’ markets. While exports recorded 68% year-on-year growth to 5.1Mt, domestic sales fell, by 4% to 29.4Mt. The association further breaks down Pakistani cement sales data into South Pakistan (Balochistan and Sindh) and North Pakistan (all other regions). Domestic sales dropped most sharply in South Pakistan, by 6% to 5.16Mt. In the North, they dropped by 3% to 24.2Mt. Part of the reason was a high base of comparison, following flooding-related reconstruction work nationally during the 2023 financial year. Meanwhile, the government finished rolling out track-and-trace on all cement despatches during the opening months of the current financial year, and commenced the implementation of axle load requirements for cement trucks. APCMA flagged both policies as potentially disruptive to its members’ domestic deliveries, amid a strong infrastructure project pipeline.
Pakistani producers suffer from overcapacity, but have established themselves as an important force in the global export market. They continue to locate new markets, including the UK in January 2024. Lucky Cement was among leading exporters overall, with a large share of its orders originating from Africa.
On 17 April 2024, the government of Punjab province set up a committee to assess new proposed cement projects, with the ultimate goal of conserving water. Falling water tables are considered a significant economic threat in agricultural Punjab. Besides completing an inspection by the new committee, proposed projects must also secure clearance from six different provincial government departments and the local government. While acknowledging the necessity of the cement industry, the government insisted that it will take legal action against any cement plant that exceeds water allowances.
Pakistan’s cement plants have grown in anticipation of a local market boom. Without this strong core of sales, underutilisation will remain troublesome, especially in North Pakistan where exposure is highest. At the same time, APCMA has given expression to the perceived lack of support affecting production and distribution. For an industry with expansionist aims, new restrictions on its growth and operations can feel like an existential menace.
Borneo Cement Sabah to inaugurate Nabawan cement plant in 2024
20 February 2024Malaysia: Borneo Cement Sabah expects to commission its US$417m integrated Nabawan cement plant later in 2024. The project additionally involves the construction of energy, road and water infrastructure. Malay Mail Online News has reported that Borneo Cement Sabah is a joint venture of Setia Alam and state-owned Sabah Economic Development Corporation, with investment from China National Building Material subsidiary Sinoma.
General manager Michael Kinsuan said that Borneo Cement Sabah will hire 1000 workers for the plant.
Locals protest Ambuja Cements’ Darlaghat cement plant’s water use
14 February 2024India: Protestors from Bilaspur District have opposed the transfer of water from the Ali Khad stream to Ambuja Cements’ Darlaghat cement plant in neighbouring Solan District. A group of local farmers and village officials have successfully suspended water transfer to the plant from the stream at Trivenighat. The Times of India newspaper has reported that the Darlaghat plant will draw an estimated 1Ml/day of water from the Ali Khad stream. Protestors say that this would be enough to dry the stream, turning the area in Himachal Pradesh into a ‘desert.’ The Ali Khad stream currently waters 24 wells and seven irrigation networks, upon which 50,000 people depend.
Holcim Argentina achieves 75% renewable energy use
25 December 2023Argentina: Throughout the second half of 2023, Holcim Argentina estimates that it will use 75% renewable energy. The milestone is the outcome of an agreement signed with 360 Energy in April 2023, under which the renewable power provider contributes to the energy mix at all of Holcim Argentina’s cement production facilities. Holcim Argentina says that the deal will help to eliminate 68,600t/yr of CO2 from its operations. The producer said that it also invested in upgrades to help reduce its water consumption by 6% throughout 2023.
Holcim Argentina has invested US$1m in on-going and planned upgrades to its facilities, and plans to invest a further US$4.9m.
Spain: Cemex’s venture capital unit Cemex Ventures announced the launch of its second LeapLab accelerator programme for high-potential start-ups on 30 November 2023. The programme introduces a cohort of five start-ups from around the globe, which will carry out pilot-scale tests of their technologies across 100 Cemex sites in 12 different countries. Throughout the process, experts from Cemex and partner organisations will support the work of the start-ups as mentors, pilot leaders, speakers and assistants, as well as providing business advice and support in network building. The selected start-ups are AI technology developers Introid, Mixteresting and Verusen, hybrid vehicle fuel optimisation company Movener and water monitoring specialist Waterplan.
Cemex’s executive vice president of digital and organisation development Luis Hernández said “Start-up acceleration is a key pillar of Cemex’s open innovation strategy, since the time to scale the technologies that enable us to build a better future is now. By combining the disruptive solutions and agility of start-ups with Cemex’s extensive industry networks and resources, start-up acceleration is a vehicle for tangible innovation generation.”
Romania: Holcim Romania has successfully upgraded pyroprocessing and cement grinding equipment at its Câmpulung cement plant in Argeș County. Germany-based KHD Humboldt Wedag supplied equipment for the upgrade. For the plant’s pyroprocessing line, this included a downcomer duct, water injection system and induced draught fan, as well as an upgrade to the clinker cooler. Meanwhile, the grinding line has received a new SKS Z 2500 dynamic separator, cyclones, process ducts and separator fan. The supplier says that the upgrade has increased the Câmpulung plant’s clinker capacity and the efficiency of its operations. The work took 14 months to complete from the signing of the contract in mid-2023.
India: Ramco Cements has commissioned a 3000t/day integrated cement line at its Ramamasamy Raja Nagar cement plant in Tamil Nadu. Projects Today News has reported that the plant runs on renewable energy from a captive wind farm, and recycles 90% of water used in production.
Ramco Cements produces Ramco 53 Infra Super cement at the Ramamasamy Raja Nagar plant. The product allows for lower cement and admixture content to be used in the production of concrete structures.
Cembureau welcomes EU Nature Restoration Law
16 June 2023Europe: The European cement industry association, Cembureau, has welcomed the enactment of the Nature Restoration Law, which aims to restore ecosystems through binding targets in line with the EU Biodiversity Strategy. The European Commission says that the law provides a framework to 'secure the things nature does for free, like cleaning our water and air, pollinating crops and protecting us from floods,' as well as to help limit climate change to +1.5°C.
In a joint statement with other extractive industry bodies, Cembureau told the EU that member states' national restoration plans should take into account industry efforts to plan and implement nature restoration, that member states should protect pioneer species in line with the Nature Directives Species Protection Guidelines' definition of temporary nature and that restoration efforts outside of designated Natura 2000 areas should be addressed on a case-by-case basis in recognition of sectoral specificities.
Colombia: Cemex says that its Santa Rosa cement grinding plant is the first unit in its South, Central America and the Caribbean (SCAC) region to attain water self-sufficiency. The plant independently meets its water requirements using a 9000m3 reservoir, constantly replenished thanks to rainwater, runoff, and water circulation devices. The move aligns with the company's Water Management Roadmap, part of its Future in Action program. The achievement takes Cemex closer to its 2030 target of reducing freshwater consumption in its cement operations by 20%.
Canada: A study led by Douglas Geoffrey in Calgary, Alberta, has patented a method of producing cement from calcium carbonate precipitated in the carbonation of brine. The method mixes the mineral with magnesium oxide and cures it to form cement.
Geoffrey noted that the brine may derive from multiple industrial processes, including fossil fuel and potash production, geothermal power generation and desalination.