August 2025

UK: UK-based startup Cocoon has raised €4.9m in pre-seed funding to develop technology that repurposes byproducts from electrified steel furnaces into a ‘near-identical replacement’ for blast furnace slag, according to the company. The modular technology integrates into existing steel-making processes without disrupting operations or requiring high capital expenditure, reports UK Tech News. Cocoon targets a 50% replacement of cement in concrete, aiming to reduce emissions for producers. Initial tests are underway at a steel plant in northern England, followed by another in the US.

Cocoon CEO Eliot Brooks said "We’re turning a byproduct with little use into a valuable product that the market badly needs and can be easily integrated into existing supply chains. By repairing a broken link in the circular economy, Cocoon provides steel makers with a new revenue stream while meeting the low-carbon material needs of the concrete industry. For every 1t of Cocoon’s slag-based cementitious material used, 1t of CO₂ can be avoided."

Brooks hopes Cocoon's climate technology will be integrated into a pilot plant by late 2025.

Uganda: West International Holding has commenced construction of a US$200m cement factory on 50 acres in Buikwe District, reports the Daily Monitor. The plant is located in Njeru municipality and construction is expected to complete by August 2025. It will employ 1800 workers and produce 4000t/day of cement.

Ambrose Byona, group director, said “This factory is going to support markets in the Central (Kampala areas), Mwanza in Tanzania and Mugingo in Kenya. We also want to use the railway to transport these products to avoid wearing out the road with loaded trucks.” The project will also provide a health centre and a school for the community.

Balaam Barugahara, state minister for gender, labour and social development, assured that local youth employment will be prioritised. However, Njeru municipality mayor Yassin Kyaze asked the company not to exploit employees like most plants in Njeru municipality are allegedly doing, saying such conduct has cast most plants negatively in the public domain.

Colombia: Cementos Argos recorded revenues of US$329m in the second quarter of 2024, down 1% from the same period in 2023. The company’s quarterly earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) was US$68.8m, while net profit reached US$31.2m. This net profit result includes the markets where it operates directly and the 31% stake it holds in Summit Materials in the US. According to the company, this result is explained "by the impact of seasonality in Summit's operations, which generate most of its net profit during the second and third quarters of the year."

Cementos Argos shipped 2.5Mt of cement across Colombia, Central America and the Caribbean in the second quarter of 2024, up 2%. However, in Colombia alone, volumes fell by 5% to 1.3Mt, despite rising exports. The company recorded a 14% rise in quarterly EBITDA to US$41.2m, with year-to-date EBITDA up by 11% to US$89.6m. In Central America and the Caribbean, Q2 2024 EBITDA was US$38m, a 13% year-on-year increase.

Cementos Argos expects improvements in Colombia's cement deliveries over the next 12 to 18 months due to stabilising new home sales, reduced mortgage rates, moderated inflation and improved housing subsidies.

South Korea: Ssangyong C&E has exported 30,000t of low-carbon limestone cement (Type IL) to the US, its first such shipment following three years of research and development, according to AJU News. The product reportedly has a reduced clinker content and maintains the same physical performance as general cement. The producer plans to export 200,000t to the US in 2024 and 600,000t in 2025.

A Ssangyong C&E official said "Currently, our country's national standards stipulate that mixed cement only uses slag, fly ash and pozzolan. In order to reduce carbon emissions in the future, conditions must be created where various types of eco-friendly cement, including limestone cement, can be used."

India: Thiruvananthapuram city Corporation has conducted a trial run of its refuse-derived fuel (RDF) plant at Sanmathi Park, Chala. The plant processes up to 1t/day of legacy waste, which is hard to segregate, to produce fuel for cement plants. The plant processes 40kg of materials per 15-minute cycle. Currently, non-recyclable materials are sent to Tamil Nadu cement plants. The government plans to establish at least one RDF plant per district as a permanent solution.

Uganda: Authorities in Tororo district intercepted a counterfeit cement operation on 7 August 2024, seizing over 4t of cement. The joint operation by police, Uganda Revenue Authority, and the Resident District Commissioner’s office targeted a group involved in producing and selling counterfeit cement, which was packaged in branded bags of Simba Cement, Tororo Cement, and Hima Cement. The bust took place 5km from Tororo along the Tororo-Jinja highway. A truck carrying the counterfeit cement was impounded, and the driver was arrested.

Albert Amula, deputy resident district commissioner, highlighted the dangers of using substandard materials, linking them to building collapses, and called on contractors to only buy from licensed hardware stores. Cement manufacturers have called for stricter regulations to combat this illicit trade.

Burkina Faso: The stone laying ceremony took place on Thursday 8 August 2024 at Ciments de l'Afrique’s (CIMAF) new calcined clay production unit and solar power plant at its plant in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. The calcined clay unit is valued at US$50m, while the solar power plant cost US$5.5m, reports Burkina 24. Completion is expected by August 2026.

Ibrahim Traore, president of Burkina Faso, said “The accompanying solar unit should make it possible to reduce production costs and we hope that in a few years, this technology will become popular and will make it possible to reduce cement costs.”

Anas Sefrioui, chair and CEO of CIMAF Group, said “The calcined clay that we will produce here in Burkina will serve as an alternative raw material to imported materials, particularly clinker.”

Nigeria: Dangote Cement has exported 14 shipments of clinker from Nigeria to Ghana and Cameroon as part of its strategy to boost foreign exchange inflows, reports Business Post Nigeria. The company reported that high demand for its products has ‘significantly’ increased its pan-African operations.

CEO Arvind Pathak said “This effort resulted in a 55% surge in our Nigerian exports, underscoring our commitment to fostering African self-sufficiency.”

Russia: Belarusian Cement Company (BCC) increased its cement supplies to the Russian Federation by 3.5% year-on-year in the first half of 2024, and by 50% in June 2024, reports Belta News. Major sales markets for BCC in Russia include Moscow, Moscow Oblast, the Central Federal District and the North-Western Federal District.

Vyacheslav Golovatsky, deputy director general for foreign economic activities, credited the growth in foreign cement sales to logistics. He said “We did a lot of work in 2023. We created a commodity distribution network, BCC-Soyuz, which has its own cement transshipment facilities. When there were difficulties with cement delivery in late 2023 – early 2024, logistics came into play. We started routing deliveries, launching our own trains that consisted of our own cars. In March 2024, our first route train went to Russia, in May 2024 we had already 12 BCC route trains, and in June 2024 - 15. Our products have been delivered to transshipment facilities, unloaded and distributed to consumers more promptly.”

India: Kaushalya Logistics (KLL) has launched a new cement depot in Ahmednagar, Maharashtra, enhancing its logistics services for Adani Cement. The depot will handle approximately 120,000t/yr of cement, supporting ACC and Ambuja Cement brands.

KLL has also introduced a new vertical in freight forwarding under full truck load services, commencing operations with VMS Equipment, a group company of construction equipment manufacturer ACE.

Managing director Uddhav Poddar said “We are thrilled to start this new association with Adani group with a new depot in Ahmednagar. Our collaboration with Adani Cement showcases our cement logistics capabilities, and our entry into the freight forwarding market marks a pivotal step in our growth strategy.”