India: ACC’s earnings before taxation, interest, depreciation and amortisation (EBTIDA) fell by 26% year-on-year to US$83.1m in the first quarter of 2022 from US$113m in the same period in 2021. Net sales rose by 3% to US$566m from US$552m. Sales volumes of cement dropped by 3% to 7.71Mt but volumes of ready-mixed concrete grew by 5% to 0.87Mm³. The subsidiary of Ambuja Cement and Holcim said that its costs had been negatively affected by a global rise in fuel costs caused by ‘geopolitical events.’

The cement producer said that its new integrated plant at Ametha in Madhya Pradesh is scheduled to be commissioned in the fourth quarter of 2022. It commissioned an upgrade to its Tikaria grinding plant in Uttar Pradesh in February 2022. Waste heat recovery unit projects at its Jamul and Kymore plants are ‘on track’ and the board of ACC has approved the next phase of similar projects at its Chanda and Wadi plants.

Tanzania: Twiga Cement’s sales were US$194m in 2021, up by 14% year-on-year from US$170m in 2020. The subsidiary of HeidelbergCement recorded a profit for the year of US$38.1m, up by 18% from US$32.2m. During the year, the company recorded its highest ever cement and clinker production and sales volumes.

US: Holcim US has successfully transitioned its 0.5Mt/yr Joppa, Illinois, cement plant to 100% Portland limestone cement (PLC) production. The plant will produce the company’s OneCem brand PLC. The producer says that the facility supplies cement to customers along the Mississippi from Minneapolis to the Gulf of Mexico and up the Ohio as far as Pittsburgh.

Plant manager Michel Klenk said “As a leader in our industry, it’s our responsibility to build a path for others to follow by setting the bar for product innovation and improvement. OneCem fits the bill as a low-carbon product that allows for sustained performance with lower emissions.”

Tajikistan: The government plans to increase exports of cement to 2Mt/yr by 2024. Exports are expected to grow at 0.2Mt/yr from 1.5Mt in 2021. Local production capacity was estimated at 5.6Mt/yr in 2021 from 16 plants. Over 4.2Mt of cement was produced in 2021.

Switzerland: Jura Cement has commissioned a regenerative thermal oxidation system at its Wildegg plant. The air pollution control system, supplied by Dürr, was installed to meet anticipated lower gas emission limits for carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, and ammonia (NH3).

China: Tangshan Jidong Cement’s consolidated net income was US$779m in the first quarter of 2022, down by 2.5% year-on-year from US$799m in the first quarter of 2021. The decline contributed to a widening in the group’s net loss to US$36.6m, more than four times its 2021 first-quarter loss of US$8.07m.

India: Kanodia Cement has commissioned its new Amethi cement plant in Uttar Pradesh. The plant consists of four grinding units spread over an area of 18ha. Indo-Asian News Service has reported that the facility’s equipment includes two 12-spout rotary packers and six floor-mounted truck loading machines, supplied by Denmark-based FLSmidth. Kanodia Cement says that the new plant marks progress in line with its sustainable development plant. Its operations will directly and indirectly employ 1000 people.

France: CRH subsidiary Eqiom has successfully commissioned its Gennevilliers construction waste recycling pilot plant. Prior to the plant’s opening, Eqiom recycled 10,000t of construction waste in the first quarter of 2022. It is now aiming to recycle 50,000t in 2022.

The company says that its continual efforts are making the circular economy possible in the construction sector.

UK: UK construction recorded its highest ever quarterly total value at Euro27.5bn in the first quarter of 2022. Participants in the industry agreed Euro10.4bn-worth of construction contracts in March 2022. Analyst Barbour ABI has reported that residential construction contracts rose by 50% month-on-month to Euro4.22bn, their highest level since the Covid-19 outbreak arrived in the UK in March 2020. Chief economist Tom Hall noted a year-on-year and month-on-month increase in office construction activity as indicative of a reversal of the home-working trend of the past two years.

Hall said “While the current state of the industry is positive with lots of activity and record-breaking levels of contracts awards and planning approvals in some areas, the horizon is more concerning. Overall, the level of planning applications received in March was low and raises questions about the delivery of the government’s commitment to raise the standard of healthcare across the country and its flagship levelling up agenda.”

India: Switzerland-based Holcim is reportedly in the early stages of selling its subsidiaries Ambuja Cement and ACC. The company has held discussions with JSW, Adani Group and others, according to sources who have spoken to the Economic Times newspaper. Multinational building material producers have also been approached. Holcim has not commented on what it described as ‘rumours.’ Ambuja Cement and ACC have a combined cement production capacity of 66Mt/yr