Displaying items by tag: Government
Lebanese government conducts u-turn on cement imports
10 February 2021Lebanon: The Ministry of Industry has reversed a recent decision to allow cement imports into the country. Following a meeting with local cement producers, Minister Imad Hobballah declared that allowing imports would decrease official selling prices rapidly, according to the L'Orient-Le Jou newspaper. Local producers have reported low sales due to a strict coronavirus-related lockdown that started in January 2021. Cimenterie Nationale reportedly stopped production in early February 2021 due to a lack of raw materials.
Cemex USA receives US Department of Energy grant for carbon capture technology study
09 February 2021US: The US Department of Energy has awarded a grant to Cemex USA, UK-based carbon capture and storage (CCS) specialist Carbon Clean and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The grant covers the implementation of a CCS system at Cemex USA’s Victorville cement plant in California, in addition to the development of a commercially viable carbon utilisation solution. The producer says that the study is due to last 30 months.
President Jaime Muguiro said, “Cemex is committed to being part of the solution to reduce carbon emissions globally and to deliver net-zero CO2 concrete to all of our customers by 2050. We cannot achieve these aims without innovative technology and collaborative relationships with both public and private organizations who share a commitment to climate action. This grant gives us an excellent opportunity to further develop a new technology to help us all reach our goals.”
Visakhapatnam Steel Plant may establish slag cement plant
08 February 2021India: State-owned Visakhapatnam Steel Plant may use available land at its steel plant in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh to establish a slag cement plant. The Hindu newspaper has reported that the Indian Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has decided to privatise the public sector unit. The state government opposes the decision and has proposed a merger with the National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) instead. This would integrate Visakhapatnam Steel Plant within the management chain of other resources used in cement production.
China: The China Cement Association has asked that regional associations and producers respect competition laws. It follows the outcome of a State Market Supervision Administration investigation into the behaviour of certain provincial cement associations and six cement companies. The association has called for a thoroughgoing removal of collusive behaviours alongside continued cement overcapacity reduction.
Tunisia: Carthage University, Ciments de Bizerte, the Tunisian Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research and the University of Algarve faculty of science and technology have concluded a study into the heavy metal content of CEM-I and CEM-II cement. The study found that both types of cement contain traces of arsenic, barium, boron, cadmium, chromium, copper, manganese, nickel, lead, strontium and zinc in equal measure, according to the Journal of Engineering.
Carthage University said, "Heavy metals in cement can originate from a variety of processes in production, including their initial presence in raw materials and fuel, incorporation into kiln refractory brick, metal erosion from the raw material grinding process and in additives such as gypsum, as well as cement kiln dust."
Portland Cement Association welcomes US Paris Agreement re-entry
22 January 2021US: The Portland Cement Association (PCA) has welcomed the new administration’s plan to re-enter the Paris Agreement to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions. President and chief executive officer Michael Ireland said, “Climate change is one of the greatest challenges of our time. The cement and concrete industry have an important role to play in decarbonising the manufacturing sector while providing the building materials necessary for a safe, resilient, and sustainable economy.”
The association’s government affairs senior vice president Sean O’Neill said “Federal policymakers will have a particularly important role to play. Some of the technologies needed to tackle industrial decarbonisation are still in the research and development phase. Governmental support is needed to accelerate both development and deployment. We also need to make sure that federal policies support industrial decarbonisation without undermining the competitiveness of US manufacturers.” He added, “Climate change is a global issue, and it will require global cooperation. The US cannot solve this problem alone.”
Japan: Taiheiyo Cement plans to establish a facility for processing waste produced by natural disasters in Saitama Prefecture. The company says that the facility will sort waste for recycling and sort non-recyclable materials suitable for use as cement additives for further processing. The plans received approval at a talk with Kumagaya City and Saitama Prefecture administrators in mid-January 2021.
The company said, “We have been accepting waste and by-products for cement production and promoting recycling, and we are now also working to contribute to the early recovery of disaster areas.”
Seven plants from Huaxin Cement selected for Chinese national energy efficiency list
19 January 2021China: Seven of Huaxin Cement’s plants have been selected on a national energy efficiency list released by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the State Administration of Market Regulation. The list contains energy efficiency ‘leaders’ from energy intensive industries in 2020. It includes 28 cement companies. Huaxin Cement’s plants were selected in Xinyang, Yangxin, Zhaotong, Zhuzhou, Xigaze, Wuxue and Tibet factory. Of these the Xinyang plant had the lowest energy intensity of clinker production of all the cement producers on the list.
US: The Maui Planning Commission has approved Hawaiian Cement’s final environmental assessment as part of its plan to move its Kahului Harbour cement terminal to an adjacent facility. The application will now move to the state Office of Environmental Quality Control for a 30 day period before the permitting process can continue, according to the Maui News newspaper. The relocation will see the erection of two new silos, with a total capacity of 6000t.
Vicat part of Genvia joint venture for hydrogen production
13 January 2021France: Vicat has joined US-based Schlumberger New Energy, clean energy specialist CEA, Vinci Construction and the Occitan Regional Agency of Energy and Climate (AREC) in a hydrogen production technology joint venture called Genvia. The partnership will establish a ‘gigafactory’ at which to develop high-temperature reversible solid oxide electrolyser technology. The gigafactory will be situated in Béziers, Occitan. Deployment will take place via CEA’s Grenoble, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes site.
“We are very pleased to be working alongside such experienced and strong partners as we strive to develop technologies that enable decarbonisation,” said François Jacq, chairman of the CEA. “Together, building on a set of technologies developed by the CEA over the last decade, we have ambitious growth plans for a technology that we expect to be a game-changer in the production of clean hydrogen. This initiative demonstrates an alignment of environmental and economic growth ambitions that is important for France and Europe in support of the government's and the commission's recovery plan.”
The technology Genvia plans to use is intended to achieve a high system efficiency, resulting in less electricity use per kg of hydrogen produced. The venture says that the technology is the first of its kind that is fully reversible, giving it the flexibility to switch between electrolysis and fuel cell functions.