Displaying items by tag: Middle East and Africa

France/Syria: The former Lafarge CEO Bruno Lafont has taken the witness stand at the start of a hearing that will focus on the alleged financing of the Islamic State in Syria in the early 2010s. Lafont took the stand on 19 November 2025 to face questions from the 16th Criminal Chamber of the Paris Judicial Court, according to the Libération newspaper. He is on trial, along with several former senior executives, for financing terrorism in Syria.

At the heart of the trial is the continued operation of the former French multinational’s assets within Syria, a country embroiled in civil war between 2011 and 2014. Lafarge has since been absorbed into Switzerland’s Holcim.

Bruno Lafont joined Lafarge in 1983 and served as its CEO from 2007 to 2015. He maintains that, on a multinational scale, the Syrian plant, located in the city of Jalabiya, north of Raqqa, was not one of the group's most strategic assets. Lafarge nevertheless aimed to supply 30% of the country's cement needs and employ 1000 people, which Lafont conceded was a ‘significant investment.’ The plant only opened shortly before the onset of hostilities.

Explaining the decision to keep the plant running, Lafont asserted that Lafarge keeping the plant open was “a form of commitment to the local communities.” Lafont said that he and his subordinates were bound by a ‘moral obligation,’ stating “These assets were ours, but they also belong to the country, to the region.”

Questioned by the presiding judge, Isabelle Prévost-Desprez, and pressed further by representatives of the National Anti-Terrorist Prosecutor's Office, Aurélie Valente and Olga Martin-Belliard, the former CEO mostly claimed he hadn't been informed about the situation at the Syrian factory. Prosecutors pointed out that Lafarge had received numerous warnings before the plant was invaded by Islamic State on 19 September 2014. They also pointed out the embassy closures, the mass departure of international companies and the removal of country directors from Syria, asking why these events did not attract the ‘curiosity’ of Lafarge’s CEO. In reply Lafont stated "Before Syria, we had experienced several Arab Springs… and they all stopped.” He also drew parallels to the situation in Egypt, which he described as ‘practically an insurrection.’

In a separate case in the US, Lafarge admitted in 2022 that its Syrian subsidiary paid US$6m to Islamic State and the Nusra Front to allow employees, customers and suppliers to pass through checkpoints after the civil conflict broke out in Syria. The group paid US$778m in forfeiture and fines as part of its plea agreement. Lafarge faces much lower fines in France if it is found guilty, but eight of the 10 individuals on trial face up to 10 years in prison if found guilty.

The trial in Paris continues.

Zimbabwe: The government has relaxed regulations so that more cement can be imported into Zimbabwe. This aims to address cement shortages experienced recently due to a national construction boom, according to the Herald Zimbabwe newspaper. Minister of Skills Audit and Development, Professor Paul Mavima, said that cement prices will also decline as a result.

Historically, construction activity peaks between April and November, just ahead of the country’s rainy season, but demand in 2025, driven by both home building and commercial construction, has been described as ‘incomparable’ to previous cycles by dealers.
Zimbabwe’s cement industry has an installed production capacity of about 2.6Mt/yr, although output has been inconsistent due to ageing equipment and fuel shortages. While the country primarily imports cement from neighbouring Zambia, imports have dropped sharply, squeezing external supply just as domestic need accelerated.

Türkiye: Nuh Çimento has installed a new electric LPS 420 portal slewing crane from Liebherr at its private port in Hereke to boost efficiency and reduce emissions. The crane has a 124t lifting capacity and can handle up to 1500t/hr. The company said that the crane is designed for high-throughput handling of abrasive materials such as clinker and cement.

Nuh Çimento’s port handles 5Mt/yr of dry bulk cargo and serves over 40 export markets. The 595m berth supports vessels up to 80,000dwt and features a 300m underground conveyor tunnel and automated loading systems.

Oman: Raysut Cement welcomed a delegation from Sinoma Overseas to its Salalah cement plant to strengthen cooperation in industrial development and sustainability initiatives, according to the company. Discussions centred on enhancing energy efficiency and advancing the companies’ ongoing waste heat recovery (WHR) project, which they say will reduce emissions and supply a substantial share of the plant’s power needs.

The project was announced in April 2025 and will be Oman’s first waste heat recovery plant, with a capacity of 9MW, according to local press. Once operational, the facility is expected to reduce the plant’s reliance on the national grid by 30% and avoid 50,000t/yr of CO₂ emissions.

Zimbabwe: Bulawayo City Council has cancelled Labenmon Investments’ lease for the construction of a cement grinding plant at Umvumila Industrial Park after the China-based company failed to finalise the lease signing process, according to The Chronicle newspaper. The lease was awarded in October 2024 but the decision follows controversy around the project. Deputy Mayor Edwin Ndlovu and finance and development committee chairperson councillor Mpumelelo Moyo were previously arrested by the Anti-Corruption Commission in an alleged bribery case.

Director of town planning Wisdom Siziba said “This report sought to cancel the offer of industrial stands 15895 and 15896 Umvumila for Labenmon Investments after council on 2 October 2024 had resolved that stands 15895 and 15896 be leased out to Labenmon Investments for an initial period of five years subject to review. The applicant indicated that they would use the stand for industrial purposes, establishing a cement mixing plant, at a monthly rental of US$450 and US$700 respectively (exclusive of VAT). The applicant had accepted the offer but did not finalise the lease signing process. Several reminders were sent to the applicant to no avail. It was against this backdrop that the department wished to have the offer cancelled and the stand repossessed.”

In October 2024, it was alleged that the two officials had been arrested for demanding a US$20,000 bribe from Labenmon Investments in exchange for approving 5.6 hectares of land for the grinding plant. The case saw the Deputy Mayor acquitted after a full trial. Councillor Moyo was found guilty and sentenced to 18 months' imprisonment. In October 2025, he was granted US$200 bail by the High Court pending appeal.

Türkiye: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is providing a €50m loan to cement producer Çimsa to support its decarbonisation efforts. According to the EBRD, the financing will fund a calcium aluminate cement (CAC) kiln and decarbonisation upgrades for existing grey and white cement kilns at Çimsa’s Mersin plant. CAC production has a ‘significantly’ lower carbon footprint than traditional grey cement, according to the producer.

The EBRD said that the project aligns with Türkiye’s Industrial Decarbonisation Investment Platform, the world’s largest industrial decarbonisation programme, which provides policy guidance and low-carbon pathways for hard-to-abate sectors, including cement.

Erdem Yasar, EBRD Deputy Head for Türkiye, said that the partnership supports both Çimsa’s competitiveness and broader industry sustainability.

Egypt: Misr Cement Qena generated a net profit of US$36.2m during the first nine months of 2025, up by a factor of 33 from just US$1.1m in the first nine months of 2024. The company’s net profit after tax over the same period increased by a factor of eight, from US$1.96m to US$16.0m.

Rwanda: Narendra Raval, Executive Chair and CEO of Devki Group, owner of Cimerwa, has announced an commitment to make Rwanda fully self-sufficient in terms of cement production ‘in the near future.’ Raval made the remarks on 14 November 2025 during a customer engagement meeting with stakeholders and distributors in the Rwandan capital Kigali. Cimerwa is Rwanda’s only integrated cement manufacturer, and is currently upgrading its facilities with a new US$190m clinker line.

Raval reported that Rwanda already makes 86% of the cement that it consumes, with imports falling from 360,000t/yr to just 72,000t/yr ‘in recent years.’ He said “I have promised myself, my staff and the country that by the next budget meeting, we will achieve a 100% import-free Rwanda.” The next Rwandan budget will run from 1 July 2026. Going further, Raval added “We will make Rwanda a net exporter of both clinker and cement within two years.”

Egypt: Cementir Group has launched two reduced-CO₂ white cement products produced at its Egyptian subsidiary Sinai White Cement across the Middle East and Africa. The D-Carb® range comprises a limestone Portland cement (matching CEM II/A-LL 52.5N requirements according to EN197-1) with around 10% less clinker than the company’s well-known Aalborg White® CEM I 52.5R product, and a CEM II/B-LL 42.5N product that has 20% less clinker than Aalborg White.

“In 2024 and early 2025, we progressively introduced D-Carb products across Europe and the Asia Pacific region, including Australia, where we have received positive feedback from diverse industry segments,” said Michele Di Marino, Chief Sales, Marketing and Commercial Development Officer of Cementir Group. “Today, extending this portfolio to the Middle East and Africa with two tailored variants represents an important milestone in Cementir’s journey toward net-zero emissions by 2050.”

Oman: Raysut Cement has signed an exclusive distribution agreement with Somalia-based Barwaaqo Cement, valued at approximately US$45m/yr. The agreement will remain in effect until 14 September 2026. According to an official statement, the deal is expected to enhance capacity utilisation and improve overall returns.