Displaying items by tag: Plant

There have been a few burner and related stories to note in the cement industry news this week. Firstly, Canada-based PyroGenesis announced that it had signed a deal with an unnamed-European cement company to supply a plasma torch system for a ‘calcination furnace.’ Around the same time UBE Mitsubishi Cement (MUCC) revealed that it had successfully tested natural gas co-firing at MUCC’s Kyushu Plant using a newly developed burner.

The PyroGenesis project is a potential game-changer for the sector because it alters the way cement production lines are heated. Roughly one third of CO₂ emissions associated with cement manufacture arise from the fossil fuels used to heat the kiln and the pre-calcination system. Cut out some of that and the specific CO₂ emissions of cement production drop. PyroGenesis’ approach uses electricity to generate high-temperature plasma. This then gives the cement plant the option of obtaining its electricity from renewable sources. PyroGenesis signed a memorandum of understanding with the power conversion division of GE Vernova in March 2025. This had the aim of targeting high temperature processes, such as cement production, with electric plasma torches. The current deal with a cement producer has been valued at US$871,000 with delivery to the client scheduled for the first quarter of 2026.

We don’t know who the mystery client might be. However, Heidelberg Materials reportedly operated a 300kW plasma-heated cement kiln at its Slite cement plant in February 2025 as part of the ELECTRA project. The producer said it had achieved 54 hours of continuous operation, with 60% CO₂ concentration in the flue gas. The aim was to reach 99%. It then said that it was planning to build a larger 1MWel furnace at its Skövde cement plant in 2026 with tests to continue in 2027. In an interview with Global Cement Magazine in May 2025, Heidelberg Materials said that it was using commercially supplied CO₂ as the ionising gas in the plasma generator but that it was considering using captured CO₂ from the production process in the future. It also mentioned issues from its trials such as the effective ‘flame’ being hotter than the conventional process but not as long. This increased the reactivity of the resulting clinker. Finally, Heidelberg Materials noted from a feasibility study that a 1Mt/yr cement plant would need around 170MW of plasma generation, but that typical plasma generators topped out at around 8MW. Hence, any full set-up would likely require multiple plasma generators. For more on non-combustion style kilns see GCW561.

UBE Mitsubishi Cement’s burner installation is more conventional but again it is concerned about sustainability. In this case the line has tested burning natural gas. The cement producer says it is the first such installation at a cement plant in Japan to do so commercially. The burner was jointly developed by UBE Mitsubishi Cement, Osaka Gas and Daigas Energy. Firstly, the plant will consider switching to natural gas. This will reduce the unit’s CO₂ emissions from fuel combustion. However, a later step being considered is to move on to e-methane. This is a synthetic methane made from CO₂ and hydrogen using renewable energy.

Finally, another recent story on this theme is the installation of a new satellite burner by Northern Ireland-based Mannok at its Derrylin cement plant in August 2025. This is Phase One of a two-part project to upgrade the pyro kiln system at the site. The cement company worked with FLSmidth on the €2.5m upgrade. The new burner has now allowed the plant to burn solid recovered fuel (SRF) by up to a 30% substitution rate in the kiln. This followed a project, also with FLSmidth, to install a FuelFlex Pyrolyzer in 2022. This is used to replace coal with SRF in the pre-calcination stage of cement production. Phase two will be an upgrade of the main burner to a new Jetflex burner. Once this part is completed, Mannok is aiming for an overall substitution rate of 65 - 70% on the whole pyro-processing system.

Burners at cement plants are replaced fairly commonly. However, the supplier companies don’t advertise every installation due to the commercial relationships with their clients and other factors. Hence the more interesting upgrades tend to get the publicity. Typically this means if a burner uses new technology, meets sustainability goals and so on, we find out about it. It’s a similar situation when a new heating technology such as plasma is trialled. Changing trends in fuel types for cement plants suggest different types of conventional burners. Some of this can be seen in the burner stories above with the trend moving towards ever higher rates of alternative fuels usage. Combustion in cement kilns is here to stay for the time being but plasma trials will be watched carefully.

The 18th Global CemFuels Conference & Exhibition on alternative fuels for cement and lime 2025 will take place in Milan on 17 - 18 September 2025

India: Industries Minister D Sridhar Babu has appealed to the union government to revive the defunct Cement Corporation of India (CCI) plant in Adilabad. At a meeting with senior officials, the proposals for restoration were reviewed. CCI management indicated that about US$227m would be needed to modernise the facility with ‘advanced’ equipment. Once operational, the unit could reportedly employ nearly 3000 people, according to Telangana Today.

Sridhar Babu said Adilabad would greatly benefit from the plant’s revival, but that it should remain under the government’s control and not become privatised. He also said that more than 809 hectares of limestone deposits are available in the region, providing long-term raw material security and ensuring the plant’s viability.

India: JK Cement has commenced construction of a US$340m greenfield cement plant in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. The new facility, spread across 212 hectares, is scheduled for completion by early 2027. The plant will reportedly ensure long-term raw material security through access to local limestone reserves, while also being close to high-demand markets in Rajasthan, Gujarat and Haryana.

Oman: Raysut Cement has appointed Khalid Ramis as the General Manager of its Salalah plant and Raashid Ali as its Group Chief Financial Officer.

Khalid Ramis holds over 30 years of experience in the bank, finance and cement industries. He has worked for Raysut Cement since 2019. Before this he held positions with Bank Muscat and BankDhofar.

Raashid Ali holds over 30 years of financial experience in the automative, facilities management, real estate and retail sectors. He has held senior roles at DAMAC, Jumeirah International and Renaissance. He is a chartered accountant.

Libya: Officials have launched construction of a US$600m cement plant in Nalut, Um al-Baqal, according to The Libya Observer. The plant will produce 12,000t/day of cement from two lines, with plans to expand to 14,000t/day, and will manufacture Portland, sulphate-resistant and high-strength cement.

Nalut mayor Abdulwahab Hajjaj said the project would support the local economy, create jobs and strengthen national growth. Project director Jumaa Khalifa Abdullah said it was one of four investment initiatives in the region.

25% of the plant’s capital will be offered for public and foreign investment at US$2.14/share, with the company expected to list on Libya’s stock exchange.

Afghanistan: Construction has begun on the third Ghori Cement plant in Baghlan province, with an investment of US$86.7m, according to local press. The facility will produce 5000t/day of cement and is scheduled for completion within 18 months.

Deputy prime minister for economic affairs Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar said the project was a major step towards self-sufficiency in cement production, job creation and stabilising prices, and that it would meet domestic cement demand once operational.

We return to Brazil this week where Cimento Itambé has inaugurated a new kiln at its plant in Balsa Nova, Parana. The US$92m investment has added 0.6Mt/yr of cement production capacity to the unit, bringing its total to 3Mt/yr. Notably, the new kiln is intended to support the use of alternative fuels (AF) such as biomass and industrial waste. Local press reports that the new kiln can operate with a 50% AF thermal substitution rate (TSR) and in tests it has reached as high as 67%.

Local market leader Votorantim Cimentos has also embarked on an upgrade programme linked to increasing co-processing rates. In May 2025 it said that it had received and begun installing a new cement mill, supplied from China, at its Salto de Pirapora plant near São Paulo. Earlier in August 2025 it revealed that it was spending US$60m on upgrades at its Nobres and Cuiabá plants in Mato Grosso. A new cement grinding mill is to be installed at the Nobres plant. This should increase the site’s cement production capacity to 1.2Mt/yr from 0.6Mt/yr. At Cuiabá the company is installing a tyre shredding unit via its Verdura subsidiary to support increased rates of co-processing of AF. Work on these projects is set to start in 2025 with completion scheduled by the end of 2026.

These schemes are part of the group’s larger US$920m upgrade investment plans across the country. Announced in early 2024, this is intended to increase competitiveness and co-processing capacity and reduce CO₂ emissions. It will also add 3Mt/yr to the company’s production capacity. An investment of US$150m from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in 2023 to Votorantim to support the uptake of AF is likely to have helped the decision to upgrade. The company currently has a target of a 50% TSR by 2030.

Of the other major producers, CSN is also aiming for a 50% TSR by 2030. It said in its 2024 sustainability report that all of its kilns were capable of processing AF. It also highlighted upgrade work at its Alhandra, Paraíba, plant in 2024 to handle, store and transport fuels, including biomass. InterCement reported some relatively high TSRs at individual plants in Brazil in 2023. For example, its Ijaci plant in Minas Gerais reportedly had a rate of 42%.

National Cement Industry Union (SNIC) data shows that the co-processing rate of AF reached 32% in 2023. The union says that this puts the sector ahead of its next target of 30% in the mid-2020s. The next one is to reach 35% by 2030. For reference, back in 2019 the country’s Cement Technology Roadmap reported that around 60% of cement kilns in the country were licensed by environmental agencies to co-process waste.

Graph 1: Sales of cement in Brazil, 2017 - 2025. Source: SNIC.

Looking at the domestic industry in general, SNIC reported growth in 2024 and the first seven months of 2025. Sales for the first seven months of the year grew by 4% year-on-year to 38.2Mt. This has been attributed to the real estate sector, boosted by the Minha Casa Minha Vida housing programme, and an expanding job market. Yet jitters remain, with fears of an economic slowdown in the second half of 2025 and uncertainty on how new US tariffs might affect the cement industry indirectly. Despite only exporting around 65,000t of cement in 2024 though, the association is wary of any indirect effects of tariffs.

It’s no surprise that cement plants in Brazil are prioritising AF usage. The market is buoyant and co-processing offers one of the cheapest routes to decarbonising cement production in the short-to-medium term. Increasing the use of AF can also potentially hedge against the cost of imported conventional fuels, such as coke, that are priced in US dollars. This is one example of SNIC’s concern over indirect effects on the cement industry from US tariffs via currency volatility. Expect AF rates to carry on rising.

The 18th Global CemFuels Conference & Exhibition on alternative fuels for cement and lime will take place on 17 - 18 September 2025 in Milan, Italy

Zimbabwe: China-based Shuntai Holdings is reportedly in a legal battle with Bryden Country School in Chegutu over the construction of a cement plant 497m from its boundary, according to local press.

The Board of Governors said that the company disclosed its plans in February 2025 to objections from the school and parents, with construction still continuing despite a High Court order halting construction. The Board said that there was no supporting documentation for the company to operate, as the area is zoned for education and also hosts a secondary school and university. Bryden said that it lodged multiple objections against Shuntai’s environmental and social impact assessment, which it claims failed to address key health and safety issues, yet the Environmental Management Agency (EMA) granted approval in April 2025. The school has since reportedly taken legal action against the regulator. A High Court judge ruled in July 2025 that Shuntai Holdings was in contempt of the stop-work order, but construction reportedly continues.

In July 2025, Shuntai administration manager Yan Bo confirmed the company has invested US$70m in the project, which is expected to produce 0.8Mt/yr of cement starting in 2026.

Zimbabwe: The Environmental Management Agency (EMA) has ordered WIH-Zim Cement, a joint venture between West International Holding and Labenmon Investments, to stop construction of its Magunje cement plant after inspectors found violations of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) conditions, including failure to compensate displaced households, according to Bulawayo 24 News. The EMA fined the company US$5000 and issued an enforcement order halting all activity until ‘EIA certificate conditions are adhered to.’

An inspection on 16 July 2025 revealed that construction continued despite High Court directives and community complaints. At least 20 households have reportedly lost farmland to a diversion road, while one homestead lies within the project boundary. Inspectors reported that WIH-Zim had already cleared 10 hectares of land and begun building staff quarters for 600 workers without meeting relocation requirements. The EMA also reportedly found that the company had failed to obtain a Communal Lands Occupation Certificate from Hurungwe Rural District Council. The EMA said “Continuous monitoring of the project is essential as this is a sensitive high-impact project,” warning that construction cannot resume until all affected families are compensated and relocated.

Local press reported in May 2025 that the cement plant was ‘progressing well,’ with the completion of site levelling and connection to the national power grid established and 60 local people already employed.

It’s been a sobering week for the cement sector in South Korea with the release of sales data for the first half of 2025.

Data from the Korea Cement Association (KCA) shows that local shipments of cement fell by 17% year-on-year to 18.8Mt in the first half of the year. The last time half-year output was reported to be below 20Mt was in 1992. The association noted that a ‘severe’ construction recession had continued from 2024. An uptick in demand for building materials is anticipated in the second half of 2025 due to postponed construction work but it is expected to be limited by a forthcoming government budget. The association said that output for the whole of 2025 is forecast to be “significantly below 40Mt unless effective construction stimulus measures are available.”

Graph 1: Cement shipments in South Korea, 2019 - 2025. Source: Korea Cement Association.

20Mt of cement output marks a dividing line in the South Korea-based market in recent decades. Previous economic low points over the last 30 years include the Asian Financial Crisis in the late 1990s and the 2008 financial crash triggered by the subprime market in the US. However, on neither occasion did half-year cement output in South Korea fall below 20Mt. The current situation is likely to be reflected in the financial results of the local manufacturers, when they are released later in August 2025, following poor first-quarter figures.

The general construction sector is facing a tough time, with construction companies facing a liquidity crunch as lending rules have been tightened. At the same time prices and labour costs are both reportedly up by 30% in the past three years. One reaction to this in Autumn 2024 was plans suggested by construction companies to import cement from China. This gained some support from the government, which said it was looking at ways to reduce costs, but then faced opposition in the National Assembly. It is unclear what has happened since then, although KCA figures show that imports of cement grew by 40% year-on-year to 384,000t in the second half of 2024.

The cement producers have reacted by shutting down production lines in some cases. In April 2025 local press reported that eight of the country’s 35 production lines had been shut down. Hanil Cement’s Danyang plant had reportedly suspended two of its six production lines. One additional kiln at Asia Cement’s Jecheon plant was preparing to be closed at this time, with the manager citing the difficulty of coping with a 70% capacity utilisation rate. This would have brought the site’s number of active lines down to two of four. Another unmentioned kiln also reportedly preparing to suspend operations would bring the total of inactive kilns up to 10.

As might be expected in this kind of business environment, mergers and acquisitions activity has started. Hanil Cement announced in mid-July 2025 that it was preparing to buy its subsidiary Hanil Hyundai Cement. The transaction is expected to cut costs of the newly combined company and yield other synergy effects.

With its high cement consumption per capita, the cement market in South Korea remains atypical compared to peer economies in East Asia and Europe. Consumption dropped after a peak in the 1990s but it remained high by international standards. Hence the outcry about a half-year cement output bigger than most European countries can manage in a year. The IMF predicts a gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of 0.8% in 2025 in South Korea, with a faster pickup of 1.8% in 2026. Construction levels are expected to remain sluggish into autumn and start recovering in 2026. General market trends in developed countries suggest that cement consumption will fall further in South Korea in coming decades, especially as sustainability trends embed. Cement sales in Japan, for example, have gradually been dwindling since the late 1990s. One question here is whether the cement market in South Korea can continue to hold its high level of consumption per capita. It remains to be seen.