Articles on the cement industry from Global Cement

The Central American countries and those of the Caribbean archipelago have a rich and varied history, evident today in their different political systems, languages and cultures. The region has been heavily influenced by cultures from sub-Saharan Africa and the European powers of Spain, Great Britain, France and the Netherlands, who colonised the region from the 1500s onwards. Many of the countries' modern economies rely on exports of primary resources (such as foodstuffs) and tourism, especially in the Caribbean, although many countries now take a significant income from the services sector.

The region's cement industries are predominantly local but can have complex trading patterns. Many nations are too small to support integrated facilities and import from larger neighbours. Indeed, only 13 of the 32 territories covered in this review have integrated cement plants. Here Global Cement Magazine looks at 12 of those 13 producers. Costa Rica is covered in more detail here.

Najran Cement Company (NCC) was established in 2005 as a Saudi Closed Joint Stock Company with a paid up capital of US$306m. The objective was to be a main supplier of cement in the southern region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and be an important exporter to Yemen. It was anticipated that locating the plant and facilities close to Najran city would greatly contribute to the fast development of the region. The company has a quarry license from the Ministry of Petroleum and Minerals for an area of 30km2 that is endowed with huge deposits of limestone, clay, sandstone and gypsum - sufficient for more than 100 years.

NCC was initially planned as a single integrated unit of 6000t/day of clinker at Sultana, around 240km north east of Najran at the tip of the Empty Quarter desert. As the project moved along a decision was taken to expand the clinker plant to 9000t/day by adding one more line of 3000t/day at Sultana to make full use of the vast raw material deposits. This was supplemented by a standalone grinding unit of 2.0Mt/yr at Aakfa, 70km to the west of Najran on the main highway to Asir region.

In this article the opportunities to recover useful energy from various sources of low-grade heat are considered in the context of the advantages offered by the Kalina Cycle® technology. In the Kalina Cycle, a binary fluid is used to extract useful work from the heat source. Typical low-grade heat sources are those associated with waste heat from industrial processes such as steelmaking and cement manufacturing that are energy intensive and where waste heat recovery can make a significant impact on energy-efficiency.

The various Kalina Cycle systems now operating worldwide are briefly described and the critical operating parameters are considered in the context of the basic principles underlying the technology associated with the use of ammonia-steam as the working fluid. The performance of the materials used in the manufacture of the various components in a Kalina Cycle system is assessed and the relevance of the potential degradation mechanisms is briefly described. It will be shown that the technology has now advanced to the stage where high availability can be achieved routinely in various types of operating environment. The potential to extend application of the Kalina Cycle technology to the recovery of waste heat in the cement industry is outlined.

Following the Ecobuild Exhibition at the ExCel Exhibition Centre in London, UK, Global Cement Magazine interviewed Lafarge UK's National Commercial Technical Manager, Bill Price. Looking into UK-specific aspects of Lafarge's cement operation, the interview explores environmental aspects of production, the current economic climate and how it has been affected by the Lafarge Group's recent restructuring to a country-based organisational structure.

Global Cement (GC): "Lafarge UK was the only conventional cement producer present at Ecobuild 2012. What does the company's presence at the event say about Lafarge in the UK?"

Bill Price (BP): "The pavilion at Ecobuild was an integrated Lafarge UK pavilion that had representation from cement, concrete, aggregates, asphalt and contracting. I think what it says is that we have a joined-up approach to sustainability in construction and that we at Lafarge are proud of our record of producing more and more sustainable cements and sustainable construction solutions."

"As a leader in our industry, facilitating and encouraging sustainable construction is at the top of our agenda after health and safety, which is why we value showcasing our sustainable offers and propositions at events such as Ecobuild so highly."

Introduction

The lie of the land

In the British cement industry restructuring has been prompted partly as a response to the ongoing challenge of weak market conditions. In 2009 the UK saw a sharp decline into recession, in 2010 it saw the first tentative suggestions of a return to stability and in 2011 it saw hopes of a modest revival, albeit at much lower level than in the early to mid-2000s.

2011 saw surprisingly robust performance in the first two quarters, with a subsequent tailing off of confidence, greater fragility and now a slip into a new 'double-dip' recession at the start
of 2012.