August 2025

China: West China Cement has appointed Chu Yufeng as its chief financial officer (CFO). He suceeds Chan King Sau, who has been appointed as a financial controller of the company and will continue to be the company secretary.

Chu Yufeng, aged 41 years, joined Yaobai Special Cement Group (Shaanxi Yaobai), a subsidiary of the West China Cement, as deputy chief financial officer in 2012. He was the deputy administration, finance and control director of Fuping Cement, another subsidiary of West China Cement, from 2010 to 2012. In 2014, Chu was appointed as the chief financial officer of Shannxi Yaobai and he has been responsible for financial management and audit matters of Shaanxi Yaobai and its subsidiaries for over five years. Prior to joining the group, Chu was a finance manager in a software company and an electric equipment manufacturer, both in China.

Chu holds a master’s degree in business administration from an international business program jointly organised by Maastricht School of Management (MSM) of Netherlands and Independent University of Bangladesh in 2005. He also graduated with a bachelor’s degree in commerce in international accounting from Xi’an JiaoTong University in 1999. He is a member of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.

Belgium: Carol Jackson, the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of HarbisonWalker International (HWI), has started a two-year term as president of the World Refractory Association (WRA). She suceeded Stefan Borgas, the CEO RHI Magnesita, who led the organisation since January 2018.

Jackson, aged 47 years, became CEO of HWI in 2017 following three years as its Senior Vice President and General Manager. She has spent over 20 years of her career in the paint, coatings, chemicals, glass, ceramic materials, and specialty steel industries, serving automotive, industrial, consumer, and construction markets. Before joining HWI in 2014, she served as Vice President of the bar, wire, and strip business units of Carpenter Technology Corporation. She also held various roles at PPG Industries, where she rose to became Director of Global Raw Materials Purchasing.

Jackson is a licensed attorney in Pennsylvania, US and she holds a Juris Doctorate from the University of Pittsburgh and a master’s degree from Carnegie Mellon University, Tepper School of Business. She earned her undergraduate degree from Duquesne University.

Uzbekistan: Chinese investors have announced the launch of a 0.9Mt/yr integrated cement plant in the Fergana region of Uzbekistan as a result of a total investment of US$113m. Trend News has reported that a second phase of work beginning in May 2020 will further increase the cement plant’s production capacity. This is one of five upcoming Chinese-owned integrated plants in Uzbekistan, with a shared capacity of 6.0Mt/yr.

Belgium: Cembureau, the European Cement Association, says it will undertake a review of the targets set out in its 2050 Low Carbon Roadmap (2013/2018) in order to align the industry’s efforts with the carbon neutrality objectives contained in the European Green Deal published in December 2019. Following this reassessment, the association says it publish a revised low-carbon roadmap setting out the key role of cement and concrete in the circular economy and a path to achieving carbon neutrality along its value chain in Europe by 2050. Cembureau expects the revised roadmap to be published in early spring 2020.

“As an industry we are determined to ensure that we play our part in helping Europe to meet its emissions reduction targets. With concrete, our industry has a sustainable building material that is uniquely positioned as an essential enabler of the transition to a carbon neutral society,” said Cembureau’s president Raoul de Parisot.

Bangladesh: Producers exported US$5.03m-worth of cement and clinker from Bangladesh in the six months to 31 December 2019 - down by 13 from US$5.75m in the corresponding period of 2018 and 1.6% below the government’s target of US$5.11m. Arab News has reported that the recipients of Bangladeshi cement and clinker included India, Myanmar, Nepal, the Maldives and Sri Lanka.

South Africa: Morag Evans, the chief executive officer (CEO) of Databuild, says that local cement manufacturers are being ‘severely’ undermined by cheap imports from countries such as China, Vietnam and Pakistan. She adds that the government’s failure to stem the influx of these products could have a severe detrimental impact on an already struggling industry.

“In an industry already in the grips of a severe downturn owing to the decline in infrastructure development, not only are these imports negatively impacting the competitiveness of our local manufacturers, but independent studies have shown the quality of these international products to be inferior,” said Evans.

She also cited quality concerns with imported cement mentioning a study conducted by local manufacturer PPC. It found that, from 14 products tested from 10 different producers, most were either over or underweight and were also of inconsistent quality.

Evans has supported the Concrete Institute’s lobbying for a 45% import tariff on cement imports. However, she acknowledges that such a move could raise the price of cement and increase inflation in the general economy.

Databuild provides information about the construction industry in South Africa.

Australia: German refractory producer Refratechnik has acquired Queensland Magnesia (QMAG). The acquisition adds 300,000Mt/yr of magnesium oxide to Refratechnik’s supply of raw materials. The company said, “With a common focus on performance excellence, we will deliver greater value to our customers.”

US: The Wildlife Habitat Council (WHC) has awarded Conservation Certificates to Cementos Argos’ 1.5Mt/yr integrated Newberry plant in Florida and 0.6Mt/yr Atlanta grinding plant in Georgia. Cementos Argos has installed a bat roost at the Newberry plant and planted bee and butterfly gardens with bird boxes for year-round resident bluebirds. The company said that the certification signals its ‘long-term commitment to managing quality habitats for wildlife.’

India: Integrated cement and grinding plants expansions by companies including Dalmia Bharat, JK Cement and Aditya Birla subsidiary UltraTech of an additional 23Mt/yr are set to bring India’s total installed cement capacity to 508Mt/yr by the end of 2020. Business Standard newspaper has reported that steady prices year-on-year and ‘softening input costs’ have facilitated the expansions in spite of a ‘flattish trend in industry-wide volume growth.’

India: Dalmia Bharat has successfully lobbied the Sundargarh, Orisha district government to request the inclusion of the company’s proposed 446 acre expansion to its Lanjiberna limestone and dolomite mine in the agenda of a village meeting in Kukuda, in which public opinion and suggestions will be recorded. The New India Express Newspaper has reported that, due to the special status of Kukuda as a Scheduled Tribal area, the village meeting forms a necessary preliminary step prior to district government permission of planned works. In October 2018, villagers in nearby Jhagarpur successfully blocked construction of Dalmia Bharat’s proposed Industrial Training Institute. The Lanjiberna mine will serve Dalmia Bharat’s 2.3Mt/yr integrated Rajgangpur plant, which was completed in 2019 at a cost of US$281m and awaits commissioning.