August 2025

Nigeria: Dangote Cement's sales more than doubled to US$584m in the first quarter of 2024. Group earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 67% to US$221m. Profit grew by 3% to US$80.5m. Consolidated cement volumes rose by 16% to 7.3Mt, while domestic Nigerian volumes rose by 26% to 4.6Mt.

CEO Arvind Pathak said “These results underscore our ability to adapt and thrive in a dynamic business environment while delivering value to our stakeholders.” He added “We continue to prioritise innovation, cleaner energy transition, and cost leadership towards achieving our vision of transforming Africa and building a sustainable future.”

Nigeria: BUA Cement reported sales of US$115m in the first quarter of 2024, up by 51% from US$76m in the first quarter of 2023. The producer’s cost of sales, meanwhile, more than doubled to US$83m. As such, post-tax profit declined by 33% to US$12.8m.

India: Orient Cement has successfully commissioned Phase 2 of the new waste heat recovery (WHR) plant at its Chittapur cement plant in Karnataka. Reuters has reported that the new phase raises WHR power capacity at the plant to 10.1MW.

Mexico: Cemex announced that it has reached full investment grade status after being upgraded to BBB- by rating agency Fitch Ratings. This follows Standard & Poor’s Global Ratings' upgrade announced in March 2024.

Fernando González, CEO of Cemex, said "Achieving investment grade is a milestone for Cemex. This rating is confirmation of both our strategy and our execution against it.”

Greece: FLSmidth has signed a two-year global service agreement with Titan Group to support 14 cement plants, three grinding plants and a cement terminal across locations including Greece, southeastern Europe, Türkiye, Egypt, Brazil and the US. The agreement encompasses a variety of onsite and remote services such as inspections, audits, troubleshooting and training for diverse equipment types, including material handling and storage, mills, kilns, coolers and pollution control systems.

Vice President of Service at FLSmidth, Isabelle Balmir, said "Titan Group is one of the leading international cement companies. With this contract, we are excited to continue our long-standing partnership and collaboration towards efficiency and sustainability. As we have service expertise located across the world, we are well positioned to support their global footprint."

Philippines: DMCI Holdings is 'optimistic' that Cemex Philippines will swing back to profit in 2024. Cemex Philippines saw its net loss increase to US$34.6m in 2023 from US$17.3m in 2023, representing a year-on-year increase of 50%. This was mainly due to higher costs and lower sales volume, according to The Manila Times.

DMCI Chairman and President Isidro Consunji said "We recognise Cemex Philippines' operational and financial issues, and we are positive that we can turn it around by 2025 because of its ongoing capacity expansion and the clear synergies it brings to our group."

DMCI expects Cemex Philippines to double its capacity in the Luzon region with the completion of a 1.5Mt/yr integrated cement production line, which is scheduled to commence operations by September 2024. The new production line, located at Cemex Philippines's plant in Antipolo, Rizal, will increase the company’s annual production capacity by 26%, to 7.2Mt/yr from 5.7Mt/yr.

Pakistan: Lucky Cement disclosed a decrease in profit for the third quarter of the 2024 financial year, due to shrinking gross margins and a fall in cement sales, according to Pakistan Press International. The company's unconsolidated earnings decreased by 27% from the previous quarter. Gross margins narrowed from 36% to 28.8%, impacted by higher coal prices, increased power costs and a shift towards clinker exports which resulted in a 10% quarterly drop in cement sales volumes. Overall revenue declined to U$98.7m. Despite this, Lucky Cement's earnings over the first nine months of the fiscal year 2024 have grown by 67% year-on-year, supported by higher gross margins and increased income from higher interest rates and dividends from Lucky Cement Investments.

India: UltraTech Cement’s full-year sales rose by 12% year-on-year to US$8.5bn in the 2024 financial year, which ended on 31 March 2024. Meanwhile, the producer’s net income for the year grew by 38% to US$840m.

China: Tianshan Cement, the main basic building materials subsidiary of China National Building Material, has announced an impairment compensation of US$2.77bn following restructuring. Reuters has reported that the compensation will take the form of shares.

Europe: Cementir Group launched D-Carb, a 15% reduced-CO₂ white cement, in Europe on 24 April 2024. The producer says that D-Carb cement maintains the early-age performance of its Aalborg White high early strength white cement, while helping builders to conform to the highest sustainability certifications. D-Carb cement achieves its emissions reduction without diminishing the product’s brightness. Following this, Cementir Group plans to roll out D-Carb cement across its global markets.

Group product development manager Stefano Zampaletta said "Performance and the white colour are key features of D-Carb, and exploring suitable raw materials and their combinations have been crucial in the product assessment. This has resulted in the accurate selection of pure, very light limestone from a stable source, which improves and stabilises the whiteness. Additionally, leveraging limestone fineness and particle size distribution, D-Carb ensures enhanced and consistent rheology, ideal for wet-cast applications, such as self-compacting concrete. These distinctive rheological properties allow for concrete finishes that resemble marble surfaces. Moreover, the enhanced synergy and compatibility between cement and admixture cater to a wide range of white cement applications."

Chief sales, marketing and commercial development officer Michele Di Marino said "We are thrilled to introduce D-Carb, our new umbrella brand for lower carbon cements, as part of Cementir Group’s ongoing commitment to address environmental challenges and climate change. As a leading white cement producer, the successful rollout of D-Carb is pivotal in advancing our Net Zero Emissions ambition."