24 November 2023

India: UltraTech Cement, India’s largest cement producer has commenced negotiations to acquire promoters’ stakes in Kesoram Industries, which sells cement under the Birla Shakti brand. It has two cement plants: Vasavadatta Cement in Sedam, Karnataka, and Kesoram Cement, located in Basantnagar, Telangana. The two plants have a combined cement capacity of 10.8Mt/yr.

Malaysia: Malayan Cement’s net profit for the first quarter of its current fiscal year, the three months to 30 September 2023, increased to US$20.5m from US$203,000 during the same period of the prior fiscal year. Its revenue also rose, to US$250m from US$183m. This was mainly due to higher sales volumes and stabilisation in the selling prices of domestic cement and ready-mixed concrete.

UK: Thousands of tonnes of waste ceramics from one of the UK’s largest ceramic tile manufacturers will be recycled to make cement as part of a new initiative from Aggregate Industries. The cement producer, owned by Holcim, has agreed a four-year deal with Johnson Tiles to take 20,000t/yr of legacy waste scrap from its Stoke factory in Staffordshire. They will be transported a short distance to Aggregate Industries’ Cauldon cement plant, where they will be crushed and mixed with limestone and the other raw materials prior to entering the kiln.

Andrew Whyatt, Geocycle UK General Manager at Aggregate Industries, said “We are delighted to be working with such a potteries stalwart as Johnson Tiles in order to recycle what would otherwise be a waste product. Materials such as this offer a great alternative to excavating fresh raw materials, preserving our local natural resources, whilst offering a solution whereby 100% of the material will be upcycled into new local cement. Both companies share a drive towards sustainable manufacturing and partnerships like this are vital as Aggregate Industries aims to reclaim or recycle 3Mt/yr of materials by 2025.”

France/Syria: The French Court of Cassation will deliver its decision on the appeal filed in May 2022 by Lafarge, now part of Holcim, in the case relating to its activities in Syria in the 2010s, on 16 January 2024.

The body will rule on the indictments of Lafarge for complicity in crimes against humanity and endangering the lives of its employees in Syria, which were confirmed by the Paris Court of Appeal in 2022, and which the company is still contesting. The group is suspected of having paid in 2013 and 2014, via its Syria-based subsidiary Lafarge Cement Syria several million euros to jihadist groups, including the Islamic State (IS) organisation, and to intermediaries, to maintain the activity of a cement factory in Jalabiya, even as the country plunged into war.

Europe: Mexico-based Cemex says that it will soon have obtained Type III environmental product declaration (EPD) certificates for the cement products it produces across its European network of cement plants. EPDs have been published for selected cements since 2021. Cemex has confirmed the publication of EPDs for all cement types in Poland and the publication of EPDs for its products produced in Croatia and Spain by the end of 2023. Phase Two of the publication process will see EPDs for cements produced in the UK, Germany and Czech Republic in early 2024, which will complete the full roll out in Europe.

Sergio Menéndez, President of Cemex Europe, Middle East, Africa & Asia, said, "EPD certificates enable our customers to make an informed choice about which materials offer the lowest carbon footprint and reduce the environmental impact of their construction projects. We have therefore made securing these objective and reliable documents, which demonstrate that our products meet the requirements of more sustainable construction, a priority across our whole European operation. I am very pleased with the progress made so far and look forward to celebrating the completion of this process."

Germany: ThyssenKrupp has reorganised its cement engineering subsidiary ThyssenKrupp Polysius from the start of October 2023 as part of its new Decarbon Technologies segment. The new division also includes bearings and drive company Rothe Erde, chemical plant supplier Uhde and electrochemical plant supplier ThyssenKrupp Nucera. In its annual report for 2022 – 2023 the group said it had formed the new segment because “we want to systematically access the enormous potential of the green transformation and translate it into value-creating growth.”

The group’s Multi Tracks segment, which ThyssenKrupp Polysius was part of previously, reported growth of 16% on a comparable basis to Euro3.17bn in the year to the end of September 2023 compared to Euro4.10bn in the same period ending in 2022. However its order intake fell by 16% to Euro3.74bn and it reported a negative adjusted earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) of Euro132m. Overall the group’s order intake, sales and EBIT all fell in the reporting period.

Miguel López, the chief executive officer of ThyssenKrupp said “The figures show that we have made progress with the transformation of ThyssenKrupp, despite the difficult environment, but also that we must continue to work hard at raising the performance of our businesses. We have therefore launched our ‘APEX’ program to speed up improvements to our businesses’ performance. At the same time, we are systematically focusing our businesses on future areas in order to leverage our full potential there, especially in connection with the enormous opportunities that the decarbonisation of industry offers us. We are positioning ThyssenKrupp as an enabler of the green transformation, thereby supporting the transformation of many industries worldwide.”

Germany: Loesche says it has acquired the technical knowledge of hydraulic systems supplier Ruhfus Systemhydraulik following the latter company’s insolvency. The acquisition of Ruhfus’ expertise will expand Loesche's capabilities in the field of hydraulic technology and enable the company to offer spare parts and services outside of the cement sector. In addition, a collaboration with former employees of Ruhfus Systemhydraulik will help it to develop new hydraulic solutions.

Ruhfus Systemhydraulik was originally founded as Rheinisches Kleineisenwerk August Ruhfus in 1907. It originally supplied metal parts for the railway sector before moving into hydraulics in the late 1950s. The company is based in Neuss and has over 100 employees.