Germany: The RKW Group came second in a study into ‘Germany's Most Sought-After Employer 2018’ by the FAZ Institute and the IMWF Institute for Management and Economic Research. The institutes looked at the 5000 largest companies in the country and scored them by quality, performance, success, sustainability, corporate culture and values.

The RKW Group is a family-owned company headquartered in Frankenthal, Germany and a manufacturer of film solutions for hygiene, agricultural and beverage sectors. It also produces packaging for powdery goods. In addition, the company makes films and nonwovens for medical applications, for the chemical and converting industries as well as for the construction sector.

UAE: Fives Group’s Mineral Business Line has set up a new subsidiary in the Middle East to support customers with services and technical assistance. Based in Dubai and referring to the Services Department, the new division aims to support Fives' customers through a local presence and by offering its services including upgrade and revamping projects, technical assistance, supply of spare parts, on-site machining and so on.

Nigeria: Ashaka Cement has spent over US$4m on community projects in Gombe state since 2010. The funding has been invested in social initiatives near its Ashaka cement plant and Maiganga coal mine, according to the Daily Independent newspaper. Its projects include training young people in vocational trades and engineering. It also distributed 5000 safety vests to schoolchildren at a community day.

Bolivia: A group of retired workers who used to work for Sociedad Boliviana de Cemento (Soboce) have asked for a 10% share in the cement producer. They have made their request to the company’s largest shareholder, the businessman and politician Samuel Doria Medina, according to the La Razon newspaper. They were allocated a 10% share in the business in 1975. However, the pensioners allege that Doria Medina cancelled their shares using false documentation. Doria Medina holds a 49% share in the company. He sold the other 51% share for US$300m to Holding Cementero, the largest shareholder of Consorcio Cementero del Sur, which is part of Gloria Group in 2014.

Lithuania: The Bega cement terminal has won a ‘Product of Lithuania’ award from the government. Minister of Economy Virginijus Sinkevičius and the President of the Lithuanian Confederation of Industrialists (LPK) Robert Dargis presented a medal to Laimonas Rimkus, the general manager of Bega, according to the Vakarų Ekspresas newspaper. The joint venture with local cement producer Akmenes Cementas was commissioned in early 2018. The terminal plans to increase its exports of cement to 0.35Mt/yr by 2020.

Barbados: The Caribbean Court Of Justice has ruled in favour of Trinidad Cement on maintaining a 60% tariff on imports of cement. The subsidiary of Mexico’s Cemex and its own subsidiary Arawak Cement complained that import company Rock Hard Cement was only being taxed by 5%, according to the Nation News newspaper. However, the case will continue as the ruling only refers to hydraulic cement. It is unclear what classification of cement that Rock Hard Cement is importing.

India: Emami Cement has been granted permission by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) to demerge its solar power assets. The cement producer has decided to focus on its core business, according to the Daily News and Analysis newspaper. The solar business part of the cement producer operates a 10MW plant at Gujarat Solar Park in Patan, Gujarat and a 3MW plant at Perunali in Tamil Nadu. The subsidiary of Emami Group will eventually be consolidated into sister company Emami Power.

Bolivia: The Potosí cement plant being built by Empresa Publica Productiva Cementos de Bolivia (ECEBOL) hopes to produce its first cement bag by December 2019. Work on the plant is over half-complete, according to the El Potosí newspaper. Construction work on the main platform of the preheater tower is continuing and civil engineering work on the mill has been completed. Most of the equipment for the project has been supplied. The plant is being built by Sociedad Accidental Imasa Polysius, a joint venture created by Polysius and Imasa. The US$240m unit will have a production capacity of 1.3Mt/yr when finished.

Spain: Cementos Portland Valderrivas’ (CPV) Alcalá de Guadaíra plant has awarded first place in its children’s painting competition to Eva María Gómez, a student at the nearby CEIP Ángeles Martín Mateo primary school. The student depicted the daily work conducted at the plant in vibrant colours. Second place went to Lucía López from the same school. Special mention was also made to Ainhoa Manzano. The competition was run with the Andalusian Foundation for Cement and Environment (FLACEMA).

US: Aggregate Industries, a US subsidiary of LafargeHolcim, has secured the contract to provide concrete for the US$2bn Minneapolis-area Southwest Light Rail Transit (LRT) extension of the Metro Green Line. The new line will run 14.5 miles from downtown Minneapolis to the suburb of Eden Prairie, Minnesota, and require construction of 16 new stations, plus the rail infrastructure itself. The project will require an estimated 0.30Mm³ of ready-mix concrete. It includes the construction of 44 structures, 29 new bridges, two cut and cover tunnels, six pedestrian tunnels, 15 at-grade crossings, 110 retaining walls and over 45,000m of track.