Displaying items by tag: Alternative Fuels

Brazil: Votorantim Cimentos grew its revenue and earnings in 2024 but its net income dropped significantly due to interest rate volatility. It noted ‘positive performance’ in its Europe and Asia region and a stable market in Brazil. It attributed its mounting earnings to its balanced portfolio, revenue in Europe and Asia, operational efficiency, reduced costs and new business.

The group’s net revenue grew by 3% year-on-year to US$4.69bn in 2024 from US$4.53bn in 2023. However, revenue fell slightly in local currencies due to negative exchange effects, particularly in North America. Cement sales volumes rose by 1% to 35.4Mt from 34.9Mt. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 16% to US$1.14bn from US$0.99bn. Earnings rose in all regions except for Latin America due to a ‘challenging’ market in Uruguay and lower prices in Bolivia. Despite this, its adjusted net income dropped by 17% to US$383m from US$461m.

“We ended the year with record-high operating results, supported by our geographic, product and business diversification, in line with our strategic mandate,” said Osvaldo Ayres, the group’s global CEO. The company invested over US$550m in 2024 towards decarbonisation, competitiveness and new businesses. A further US$880m investment plan in Brazil to 2028 was announced in early 2024. Ongoing projects include upgrades supporting higher thermal substitution rates at the Xambioá plant in Tocantins state and the Salto de Pirapora plant in São Paulo. A new 1Mt/yr cement grinding unit is being built at the Salto de Pirapora site. Construction of this project is scheduled for completion in the second-half of 2025. A new 1Mt/yr cement grinding unit was also announced at the Edealina plant in Goiás. This project is expected to be completed in the first half of 2026.

Votorantim also revealed that it paid around US$190m to the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE) at the end of 2024 in connection with an agreement to end all administrative and judicial litigation. It said “We definitively resolved all pending disputes with CADE. We did not acknowledge, at any time, having committed any unlawful act or engaged in any anticompetitive behaviour.”

Finland: Tana Oy has appointed Jari Mennala as its CEO with effect from 5 May 2025. He succeeds Kalle Saarimaa who became the Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President of NG Group in February 2025.

Mennala was appointed as the Director of Worldwide Forestry Sales & Marketing and Managing Director of John Deere Forestry Oy in 2024. He has worked for John Deere since 2008 for its forestry division in Finland, the US and the UK. He holds a master’s degree in industrial management from Tampere University of Technology and an executive master’s of business administration from Aalto University in Helsinki.

India: Swachha Andhra Co. chair K Pattabhiram and Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board chair P Krishnaiah said cement manufacturers must use refuse-derived fuel (RDF) in kilns as per the Solid Waste Management rules issued by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs in 2018. The regulation requires a minimum RDF usage of 15% to reduce coal consumption in cement production.

Pattabhiram said 7000t of waste is generated daily from 123 urban local bodies, and stressed the need for daily processing to eliminate dumping yards. He urged cement plants within 400km of municipalities to comply. Krishnaiah added that a joint technical committee would be formed to assist cement producers in implementing the rule.

Slovakia: Slovak cement plants recovered 374,000t of alternative fuels made from waste in 2024, replacing 75% of heat from fossil fuels, according to the Cement Manufacturers Association (ZVC) of the Slovak Republic. This has reportedly saved almost 230,000t of coal and reduced the cement plants’ carbon footprint.

Director of ZVC Rudolf Mackovic said “Instead of waste, such as non-recyclable plastics, being deposited in landfills without being used, it is processed into fuel in processing plants. Such an alternative fuel meets strict quality and ecological parameters.”

Kenya: At least 99kg of heroin and cocaine worth US$2.3m were destroyed at the Bamburi Cement Mombasa plant, at the request of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations Kenya, according to a social media post from the company. Bamburi Cement’s kiln was selected as the most secure method for incinerating the seized narcotics.

“Our kilns co-process waste and convert it into energy, reducing CO₂ emissions and supporting a clean circular economy. We are proud to contribute to this public interest solution that has eliminated a threat posed to our fellow Kenyans,” said Sustainability & Geocycle Director Jane Wangari.

Bamburi Cement has previously collaborated with multi-agency teams to dispose of over 5000t of hazardous waste imported into the country at its Mombasa facility.

Nigeria: The Lagos State government has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Lafarge Africa for the collection of non-recyclable combustible waste from across the state and landfill sites for conversion into alternative fuel at Lafarge’s Ewekoro plant.

Lafarge Africa CEO Lolu Alade-Akinyemi said “We have successfully deployed waste-to-energy solutions globally, and today, we are extending that expertise to Lagos.”

Oman: Raysut Cement has signed a memorandum of cooperation with Oman Environmental Services Holding Company (Be'ah) and Germany-based MVW Lechtenberg and Partner to explore the feasibility of producing refuse-derived fuel. The project aims to promote alternative fuel use in heavy industries, reduce waste and support Oman's environmental sustainability goals.

CEO of Raysut Cement, Hilal bin Saif al Dhamri, said "This project underscores the partnership between Be'ah and Raysut Cement in advancing the circular economy and supporting Oman's efforts to achieve carbon neutrality."

Egypt: Arabian Cement Company (ACC) has signed a €25m loan agreement with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). The loan will be used to assist the company’s decarbonisation efforts. It will finance the company’s alternative fuel capacity expansion and automation of its facilities. The company will also acquire and install a hydrogen injection system at its Ain Sokhna cement plant. This will reduce CO₂ emissions by 130,000t/yr.

CEO of Arabian Cement, Sergio Alcantarilla, said "This agreement with EBRD is a key milestone in ACC's sustainability journey, supporting our transition to cleaner technologies. The integration of the hydrogen injection at our Ain Sokhna plant will enhance operational efficiency and significantly reduce our carbon footprint."

Canada: Ash Grove Cement, part of CRH, says it will release the findings of technical studies supporting its plan to burn alternative fuels at its Mississauga cement plant. Ash Grove plans to burn materials such as construction and demolition waste, wood, plastics and rubber.

The company says the initiative will reduce fossil fuel emissions by limiting its current reliance on coal, while also diverting materials from landfill.

US: The Portland Cement Association (PCA) has asked the US Department of Energy to add alternative fuels to its Material Circularity Framework. It said that alternative fuels in the cement manufacturing process are better for the environment than the use of traditional fuels and that it diverted a significant amount of materials from landfill. The PCA said that the DOE’s Framework “…should address how to promote circularity through alternative fuels and replacement of raw materials to promote reducing greenhouse gases emissions.”

The DOE released its draft strategic framework ‘Circularity for Secure and Sustainable Products and Materials’ in October 2024. It asked for feedback from stakeholders by mid-December 2024. The framework is intended to identify opportunities and challenges to use circularity to decarbonise industry, secure supply chains, benefit communities and create jobs. The draft mentions recycling concrete and generating secondary cementitious materials from recovered material streams.