Displaying items by tag: Limestone
ACC resumes limestone mining operations at Bargarh
18 June 2015India: ACC resumed limestone mining operations at Bargarh, Odisha, after about nine months, on 17 June 2015.
ACC stopped mining at Bargarh in October 2014 following a government notice to suspend operations at the plant. The company stopped clinker production at its Chaibasa, Jharkhand, and Bargarh plants, but continued to operate the grinding units associated with these. "The impact of the closure was not material since cement grinding continued with the transfer of clinker from sister works and clinker purchases," said ACC.
State governments were issued orders to stop mining, following a Supreme Court judgement in the matter of Goa Foundation versus Union of India and Others and in Common Cause versus Union of India on the deemed renewal of mining leases and a subsequent amendment to The Mineral Concession Rules 1960.
ACC resumed limestone mining operations following terms of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Ordinance 2015.
Cement plants’ blasting threatens the Angat Dam
10 June 2015Philippines: According to local media, Cement plants using explosives to extract limestone in the mountains of eastern Bulacan poses a threat that might break the Angat Dam, a large hydroelectric facility that supplies electricity and water to the Manila metropolitan area.
"Years of massive quarrying of mineral deposits in the area had taken its toll. The removal of the mountains in the area is not only ugly, but also appears to be a disaster waiting to happen since the mining area is so close to the Angat dam," said Martin Francisco, chairman of the Sagip Sierra Madre Environmental Society Inc (SSMSI). He added that since Angat Dam lies along the West Valley fault line, the mining of limestone deposits in the area could weaken the structure of the dam and its foundation because cement plants are still using explosives in extracting marble and limestone.
In a report to Bulacan governor Wilhelmino M Sy-Alvarado, the SSMSI said that residents and a cultural minority group, the Dumagats, have complained about the vibrations and noise in the mountains caused by dynamite blasts. "The explosions are causing too much anxiety and could even scare the people out of their wits since the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology has once again confirmed that the West Valley Fault is active. This is another threat to a dam break," said Francisco. He added that several landslides were reported in 2014 and several small sink holes in the mountains have appeared.
Alvarado has formed a team to investigate the matter and has requested that the cement plants refrain from using explosives to extract limestone.
House of Representatives try to avert clash between Edo and Kogi over limestone deposit
03 June 2015Nigeria: On 2 June 2015 the House of Representatives intervened in a dispute between Ohinoyi of Ebiraland, Alhaji Ado Ibrahim and Company (AICO) in Kogi State and Okpella in Edo State over the ownership of a limestone deposit. The motion on the issue, which came as a matter of Urgent National Importance, moved by Edo lawmaker Abubakar Momoh, was unanimously adopted by the House.
"This peaceful co-existence is being threatened by the purported sale of OBU Limestone in Okpella, owned by Okpella Cement, to Dangote Company by Alhaji Ado Ibrahim. This is with a view to frustrating BUA Cement Company, which acquired Okpella Cement as a private investor," said Momoh.
According to Momoh, BUA has also built a cement plant in Okpella, which is due for inauguration in June 2015. "The House recalls that when in 1994, this same ownership of OBU Limestone deposit arose, the Okpella community went to court on the issue. The suit was filed against AICO, which prompted AICO to file application in 1997 to the Okpella community for local consent. The consent was turned down on account of having already granted the same to Edo Cement, which owned the mining license of the deposit," said Momoh.
According to Momoh, if nothing was done immediately to settle the matter, it might lead to a clash between the parties. He urged the security agencies to make adequate security arrangements in the location. "The governments of Edo and Kogi should intervene and settle the matter amicably, before it degenerates into serious inter-communal clash between the two states. The National Boundary Commission is urged to intervene with a view to permanently establishing the boundary between Edo and Kogi."
The acting speaker, Emeka Ihedioha, who presided over the plenary session, advised the two communities to maintain peace and assured them that the house would do its best to resolve the issue.
Prism Cement plans 3Mt/yr clinker plant
13 February 2015India: Prism Cement is planning a 4.4Mt/yr limestone mining project, which will include a 3Mt/yr capacity clinker plant and a 48MW coal-fired power plant, at the village of Kotapadu and Kalvatala in Kurnool District, Andhra Pradesh. About 6.63km2 has been acquired and the project awaits approval.
Prism Cement plans a limestone mining project and cement plant in Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh
12 January 2015India: Prism Cement is planning a 4.4Mt/yr capacity limestone mining project at the village of Kotapadu and Kalvatala in Kurnool District, Andhra Pradesh. 6.63km2 of land has been acquired. The project will come also include a 3Mt/yr capacity clinker plant and a 48MW coal-fired power plant. The project is waiting for the new industrial policy to be established by the State Government.
Tanzania Portland Cement agrees prisoner labour limestone deal
19 November 2014Tanzania: The Tanzania Portland Cement Company (TPCC) and the Tanzanian government have agreed to start producing limestone from mines within Boko prison territory in early 2015. Permanent Secretary at Ministry of Home Affairs Mbaruk Abdulwakil, Commissioner General of Prisons John Minja and TPCC Managing Director Alfonse Rodriguez have announced that a final agreement on the partnership will be sealed by the end of 2014.
"In principle, the government has approved this public private partnership, which is part of reforming and modernising the prison services," said Abdulwakil. The government will receive 1200 cement bags and US$58,000 to build Boko prison staff quarters and office facilities. In return TPCC will mine limestone within the Boko prison premises for use as raw material at its Wazo hill plant.
India: Teja Cement is planning a 3Mt/yr limestone mining project in Kadapa, Andhra Pradesh. The limestone will be used for its integrated cement plant, which will be built in the same location. Environmental clearance has been received. The mining project is expected to commence after completion of the civil works of the cement and clinker projects.
India: Spectrum Meghalaya Cement Company is planning a 2Mt/yr limestone mining project in West Kameng District, Arunachal Pradesh. The limestone will be used for its cement plant, which is being constructed adjacent to the mine. The project is waiting for its mining lease and mining work is expected to commence in 2015.
India: Shree Cement is planning an expansion of its captive limestone-mining project at Baloda Bazar, Raipur District, Chhattisgarh from 4.8Mt/yr to 8.6Mt/yr on 5.31km2 of land. The project will be part of its integrated cement plant and will be designed by JM Enviro Net. The expansion is currently waiting for environmental clearance. Mining work is expected to commence within two years.
Nigeria: The board of directors of Ashaka Cement plc, with the support of parent company Lafarge, has agreed to fast track the expansion of its US$617m cement plant in Ashaka, Gombe State. The move became imperative in order to guarantee the future of Ashaka Cement, to enhance job creation and to deliver economic and social welfare to the immediate communities. Chairman of the board of Ashaka Cement, Alhaji Umaru Kwairanga, confirmed the developments.
"Having secured sufficient limestone and coal reserves to support the existing plant as well as the new plant, the contracts have been signed with the main equipment and engineering suppliers," said Kwairanga. He added that credit facility lines of US$308m had been secured and signed in addition to internally generated cash flows to support the expansion project.
"Ashaka Cement has operated in harmony with all of its neighbouring communities to the mutual benefit of both parties," said Kwairanga. "In the last three years alone the company has spent US$2.47m on community-related projects and there is the opportunity for the company to do more as the partnership thrives."