Displaying items by tag: US

Australia: Rampant inflation, restructuring costs and a softening US housing market have been blamed for a third earnings downgrade at building materials group James Hardie. The company’s new chief executive officer Aaron Erter has also warned of ongoing challenges for the business in Australia, where the housing boom is grinding to a halt in the face of surging interest rates and the end of the federal government’s HomeBuilder stimulus.

James Hardie reported an adjusted net income of US$129.2m in the three months to December 2022, down by 16% year-on-year from the same quarter of 2021. Global net sales of its fibre cement and cladding products were down 4% during the quarter, at US$860.8m, driven down by falling sales volumes in its largest market in the US, as well as in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region.

More widely, price increases partially offset an 11% decline in global sales volumes across James Hardie’s entire range of business lines. The challenging conditions led to full-year earnings guidance for the 12 months to 31 March 2023 being cut for a third time, to US$600 - 620m, in line with the prior fiscal year.

Italy: Buzzi Unicem recorded consolidated sales of Euro4bn in 2022, up by 16% year-on-year from 2021 levels. The producer's earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 22% year-on-year to Euro288m. The earnings figure is 33% higher than Buzzi Unicem's previous full-year 2022 EBITDA forecast of Euro216m.

Buzzi Unicem said that group cement sales fell by 9.2% to 28.3Mt, and volumes contracted in Italy, Eastern Europe and the US. The producer noted logistical issues disrupting sales in the US.

Japan: Taiheiyo Cement recorded a net loss of US$135m during the first nine months of its 2023 financial year, compared to a net profit of US$226m during the first nine months of the 2022 financial year. Nikkei Financial News has reported that the group lowered its financial forecast for the full 2023 financial year accordingly. Taiheiyo Cement now expects to record a loss of US$199m, compared to a US$221m profit in the 2022 financial year. The producer previously revised its earnings and profit forecasts downward following its first-half 2023 financial year results on 10 November 2022.

During the first nine months of the 2023 financial year, Taiheiyo Cement recorded sales of US$4.58bn, up by 14% year-on-year. The producer said that new US acquisitions during the year so far helped it to increase its cement volumes in that market.

US: The Department of Energy’s (DOE) Carbon Storage Assurance Facility Enterprise (CarbonSAFE) initiative has awarded funding of US$8.9m to Heidelberg Materials North America to study the subsurface geology for suitability for the storage of carbon dioxide at the Mitchell integrated cement plant in Indiana. The proposed project will geologically characterise several prospective reservoirs under the Mitchell plant for storage of more than 50Mt of CO₂ over a 30-year timeframe.

The award, which is managed by the National Energy Technology Laboratory, will be issued to the Illinois State Geological Survey at the University of Illinois (ISGS) as the prime contractor, with the company acting as a technical and industrial partner. Heidelberg Materials is contributing about US$1.5m in funding while ISGS will be contributing approximately US$0.6m for a project total of US$11.1m. The funding was part of a DOE initiative that generated nearly US$125m in funding for 10 projects to characterise suitability for carbon storage across the US.

Heidelberg Materials’ Mitchell cement plant is being upgraded with a new production line. Full production on the new line is anticipated to start in early 2023.

US: Prometheus Materials has been awarded ASTM C129 certification for non-loadbearing concrete masonry units (CMU) and ASTM C90 for loadbearing CMUs for its bio-cement product. The company is commercialising a process to produce cement and concrete using microalgae.

Loren Burnett, the chief executive officer of Prometheus Materials, said “We are thrilled to have achieved these two foundational certifications as we proceed in full-force with our goal of decarbonising construction.” He added, “Prometheus Materials’ product is poised to change the future of construction, converting one of the most carbon-polluting industries to a low-carbon – and one day net-zero carbon – reality.”

Find out more about Prometheus Materials in the October 2022 issue of Global Cement MagazinePrometheus Materials in the October 2022 issue of Global Cement Magazine

US: Holcim has signed an agreement with Duro-Last to acquire the roofing systems producer for US$1.29bn. Reuters has reported that the acquisition will be Holcim's largest for all of 2022 and 2023 so far. Once the parties complete the transaction, Duro-Last's business will join Holcim's products and systems division. Holcim expects the deal to yield synergies of US$60m/yr, primarily through a reduction in the cost of materials.

Holcim expects its products and systems division to contribute a majority of its profit in North America once increased investment under the US government's Inflation Reduction Act begins to take effect. In 2022, the division accounted for 40% of regional profit. The group is committed to a global target of 30% of sales being attributable to the products and systems division by 2025, compared to 19% of sales in 2022.

US: US cement companies produced 95Mt of cement in 2022, up by 2.2% year-on-year from 93Mt in 2021, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). The country exported 900,000t of cement and clinker, down by 4.3% from 940,000t. The USGS recorded a 9.1% leap in apparent national consumption, to 120Mt from 110Mt. Cement imports helped to close the gap, rising by 20% year-on-year to 24Mt from 19.9Mt.

Among the US's main trade partners for cement imports, cement production fluctuated in 2022. Turkish cement production rose by 3.7% year-on-year to 85Mt, Mexican cement production fell by 3.8% year-on-year to 50Mt and Vietnamese cement production rose by 9.1% year-on-year to 120Mt. Globally, the USGS estimated a year-on-year cement production decline of 6.8% to 4.1Bnt.

US: Mitsubishi Cement Corporation has reportedly abandoned its planned construction of a cement terminal at the Port of San Diego in California. The Union-Tribune newspaper has reported that the cement producer failed to produce a plan involving electric vehicle use for cement deliveries to the facility. Board of Port Commissioners rejected the company’s previous terminal proposal in 2020 because of its involvement of diesel-powered cement trucks.

US: Cemex has ordered a type 10 000 S mobile ship unloader from Sweden-based Bruks Siwertell for use at Belle Chasse in Louisiana. The ship unloader was delivered towards the end of 2022, has a continuous rated cement handling capacity of 300t/hr and can discharge vessels up to 10,000dwt.

Germany: Hazemag has successfully completed its construction of a Centre Sizer 1025 crusher and a HAF25142 apron feeder. Hazemag will now despatch the equipment to Florida, US, where a ‘major aggregate and cement producer’ will integrate them in its operations.

Hazemag said “From the project’s inception, this producer focused on key partners that could deliver proven, reliable solutions - we are happy to be one of them.”