Displaying items by tag: Plant
Sri Lankan plant to be restarted
29 July 2013Sri Lanka: The State Resources and Enterprise Development Ministry of Sri Lanka will re-establish a currently closed cement plant in Kankesanthurai, Northern Province, in the extreme north of the country. The plant will be restarted by Sri Lanka Cement. The ministry estimates that, with an investment of US$11.4m, the plant can become operational again within 12 months.
Project proposals to re-establish the factory were presented to State Resources and Enterprise Development Minister Dayasritha Tissera by Sri Lanka Cement Corporation Chairman N S M Samsudeen on 26 July 2013.
According to the project proposal, funds will be sought from the Bank of Ceylon and a copy of the project proposal was also presented to the Bank of Ceylon by Samsudeen. The project aims to produce a minimum of 12,000 x 50kg cement bags per day, which is 600t/day, or 0.2Mt/yr.
Sri Lanka Cement said that it could cover the project cost if it is selected as the main cement supplier for the Northern Highway project initiated by the government. "The project can save US$13m/yr in foreign exchange spent to import cement to the country and it will also generate 300 direct employment and 400 indirect employment opportunities for people in Kankesanthurai," said Samsudeen. Sri Lanka is in the process of building a series of new highways and toll-roads.
The announcement regarding Sri Lankan Cement comes shortly after a series of announcements regarding capacity expansion in Sri Lanka despite a decrease in demand for cement in the first half of 2013. Tokyo Cement plans a 1M/yr plant and Pakistan's D. G. Khan Cement and Thatta Cement have both announced plans for grinding capacity on the island.
Tokyo Cement plans US$50m plant in Sri Lanka
24 July 2013Sri Lanka: The Tokyo Cement Company intends to build a US$50m cement in Trincomalee, Eastern Province a top official has said. The new 1Mt/yr plant will be called the Tokyo Eastern Cement Company. The build will also include a captive 10MW biomass power plant.
"We are currently in the process of finalising a 33-year lease agreement with the government for the land to construct the factory," said Tokyo Cement Managing Director (MD), S R Gnanam. Tokyo Cement has received tax breaks on the investment that will be financed by internal funds and bank loans. The company anticipates a 10% year-on-year growth in cement demand in the medium term.
Sri Lankan market could rebound in 2013
22 July 2013Sri Lanka: Sri Lanka's cement demand will pick up in the second half 2013, ending a slump that began in 2012, according to Philippe Richart, the head of Holcim (Lanka) Ltd. However, he added that cement volumes were 7 - 9% down year-on-year in the first half of 2013. In 2012 the firm posted revenues of US$152.9m.
"We expect the second half to be better, whereas 2012 saw a little bit of a decline," said Richart. "Overall we think the market this year will be probably down by 2%."
Tokyo Cement, another Sri Lankan firm which operates grinding plants had also said demand has fallen by 7% in the first quarter but that an improvement was expected.
Official data shows that Sri Lanka's domestic cement production was down by 3.4% year-on-year to 320,000t in the first two months of 2013. Imports were down by 34% to 593,000t. However, production picked up in March 2013 and first quarter production was up by 0.7% year-on-year. Imports for the first quarter also surged by 118% to 854,000t.
Dominican Republic: President Danilo Medina has inaugurated the Cemento Panamericano (PANAM) plant at Villa Gautier, San Pedro in the Dominican Republic. PANAM executive Manuel Estrella said that the US$80m plant will create 800 direct and 2400 indirect jobs. The PANAM cement plant will increase Dominican domestic cement production capacity to nearly 7Mt/yr.
Uzbekistan: The Almalyk Mining and Metallurgical Plant (AMMP) plans to build a US$250m cement plant in the Surkhandarya region in southern Uzbekistan. The Government of Uzbekistan has instructed AMMP to start negotiations with Turkey's Dal Teknik Makina on the project's implementation. The plant will have a cement production capacity of 1.5Mt/yr and should be completed by 2017.
The project will be financed by AMMP with loans from the Fund for Reconstruction and Development of Uzbekistan and Uzbek banks. Previously the plant was to be built by the national oil and gas company Uzbekneftegaz but it failed to attract foreign partners to the project.
AMMP and Dal Teknik Makina are also collaborating on a cement plant in the Jizakh region of Uzbekistan. The plant is due to be built by the end of 2014.
Madras to install limestone beneficiation plants
15 July 2013India: Madras Cements is to set up limestone beneficiation plants to help it improve its cement raw material resources and extend the lifespan of its limestone mines. Once the beneficiation plant is in place, low-grade limestone will be processed to 12.5% SiO2 content. The cement plant will then use equal quantities of beneficiated and high grade limestone.
Madras will install the first of such plant at a cost of US$5m at Alathiyur in Tamil Nadu, where it has a 3Mt/yr cement plant. Once the 400t/hr beneficiation unit is stabilised, the company will establish similar facilities at other plants, according to A V Dharmakrishnan, Mardas' CEO. He said that, following the installation of the plants, the company will be able to avoid wasting huge quantities of its limestone supplies, extending the life of its limestone quarries.
Currently Madras' limestone can have up to 30% SiO2 content can be as high as 30%. It is either rejected or blended with high-quality limestone (8% SiO2) purchased from an outside source.
Birla announces US$416m for three new plants
12 July 2013India: Birla Corporation has announced that it will increase cement production capacity by 4.5Mt/yr with an investment of around US$416m over a period of three years. Of the proposed 4.5Mt/yr, the company plans to set up two 1.5Mt/yr facilities at Chanderia, Rajasthan and a 1.5Mt/yr plant at Satna, Madhya Pradesh.
The total cement production capacity of the company at present is 9.3Mt/yr. The proposed expansion therefore represents around half of its current installed capacity.
Guatemalan protests over Progreso cement plant
11 July 2013Guatemala: Local press has indicated that Guatemalan residents are protesting against local cement manufacturer Cementos Progreso's plans to build a cement factory in San Juan Sacatepéquez, 30km north west of Guatemala City. Members of 12 local communities claim that they were not consulted prior to works commencing and they say that the cement plant will contaminate the local environment.
The cement factory will be built in the area to serve construction of a 24km highway known as the 'Anillo Regional' that will connect the departments of Guatemala, Quiché, Baja Verapaz and Chimaltenango. The highway is expected to cost US$19.2m and works are being carried out under a public-private partnership, in which Cementos Progreso is participating.
The Guatemalan president Otto Pérez inaugurated the start of construction works in May 2013 and defended the project, saying that it would bring development to the area, according to a presidential statement. "I want to ask the local population, which will benefit from the project, to help us and collaborate," said Pérez. The president also characterised claims that the highway will damage the environment, affect local farming and reduce water resources in the area as 'lies.'
Nigeria: The China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) has released plans to invest around US$1bn in Nigeria towards the construction of a cement plant and other projects, including the modernisation of a port near Lagos, a saw mill, real estate investment and manpower development. President of CCECC, Yuan Li, made the announcement in conjunction with a Nigerian delegation to Beijing led by the Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan.
UltraTech Cement plans US$415m plant in Tamil Nadu
10 July 2013India: UltraTech Cement, part of the Aditya Birla Group, is working on environmental clearance for a new US$415m cement plant in Tamil Nadu, according to Indian media. The project will have a cement production capacity of 5.5Mt/yr, a clinker production capacity of 4.5Mt/yr, a 75MW captive power plant (with additional power from diesel generating sets of about 18MW) and a 15MW waste heat recovery facility.
The public hearing for the project was conducted in May 2013 as part of the environment impact assessment and management plan. The plant is intended to two have two production lines. The total project area is about 263 hectares with a plant area of about 86 hectares.
UltraTech is one of the largest cement producers in India with a total capacity of around 52Mt/yr.