Displaying items by tag: Poland
Court confirms fine by Polish competition body
12 April 2018Poland: The court of appeal has supported a decision by the Office for Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) in 2009 to fine six cement producers for cartel-like behaviour. However, the total fine has been reduced by one third to Euro67m from Euro98.3m, according to the Polish News Bulletin.
Grupa Ozarow is to pay Euro22.1m, Cemex Polska Euro16.6m, Gorazdze Cement Euro12.3m, Dyckerhoff Polska Euro7.51m, Cementownia Warta Euro5.55m and Cementownia Odra Euro2.87m. Some companies had their fines reduced by the court of appeal. Dyckerhoff will pay Euro7.5m instead of Euro13m and Cemex Polska will pay Euro5.88 less than the original fine. Some of the companies involved are considering appealing to the Supreme Court.
Poland: Lafarge Poland has appointed Xavier Guesnu as the president of its management board. He succeeded Federico Tonettiego in March 2018. Tonettiego had held the role since 2014.
Guesnu has worked for LafargeHolcim for eight years. In 2010 he was responsible for Lafarge's strategy and development in global markets, acting as the Vice President for Strategy, Development, Acquisitions & Mergers. From 2013 he was the General Director of the aggregate business in eastern Canada. Previously he worked as a business consultant for Bain & Company. He is a graduate of Mines ParisTech engineering school in Paris, France.
Poland: LafargeHolcim has celebrated investing over Euro95m at its Kujawy cement plant since 2008. As part of the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone, the plant has had a number of upgrades over the last decade and has created over 60 jobs.
Projects at the site have included spending Euro24m on environmental improvements such as installing new filters, building a new clinker silo and four cement silos, and converting the plant to process alternative fuels. Euro56m has been invested on production upgrades including a new cement grinding mill, a new calciner and new constant monitoring systems. Euro18m has been spent on two bulk loading terminals, a new weighbridge and self-loading systems and a new laboratory.
Belarus: The Belarusian Cement Company increased its exports of cement by 42.6% year-on-year to 1.4Mt/yr in 2017. The exported cement had a value of US$682.m, according to the Belarusian Telegraph Agency. The company has attributed the rise on an efficiency drive that it says has reduced the cost of production by 50%. The company mainly exports to the Commonwealth of Independent States region but it has started selling its product in parts of the European Union, including Poland and Latvia. It plans to increases its exports by 4% in 2018, partly by introducing 35kg bags.
Cem'In'Eu to open first grinding plant in May 2018
23 January 2018France: Cem'In'Eu intends to open its first cement grinding plant in May 2018. The 0.24Mt/yr plant is located at Tonneins in Lot et Garonne, according to Les Echos newspaper. It has had an investment of Euro18m. The company is planning to open new grinding pants at the rate of one per year.
New locations include Chalon-sur-Saone in Saone-et-Loire, Portes-lès-Valence in Drôme, Montreuil-Bellay in Maine-et-Loire and Mulhouse-Ottmarsheim. Internationally the company is also considering new plants in London in the UK, Poland, Switzerland and Germany. Financing for the company is provided by Pergam, a French private equity firm that has already raised Euro33m.
BWF Envirotec acquires Orwat Filtertechnik
02 January 2018Poland: BWF Envirotec Group has purchased Orwat Filtertechnik. Based in Mysłowice, Silesia, the company has been producing and distributing filter bags and filter pockets for dedusting and flue gas cleaning technology as well as pockets, cartridges and compact filters for air conditioning and ventilation technology since 1995. The company also has a sales office in Warendorf, North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany giving it a European presence. No value for the acquisition has been disclosed.
"Orwat Filtertechnik, with its technologically outstanding equipment, is an excellent addition to our line-up with a high level of benefit for our customers, particularly for plant builders and operators of flue gas cleaning systems,” said Stefan Offermann and Philipp von Waldenfels, managing partners of BWF Group. They added that the acquisition also strengthens its Offingen-based headquarters.
LafargeHolcim spends Euro38m on upgrades to Polish cement plants
19 December 2017Poland: LafargeHolcim has spent Euro36m on upgrades to alternative fuels handling at its Kujawy cement plant. The investment includes preparing the kiln for the use of alternative fuels, building a new terminal, setting up a new automated laboratory and building a hall for storing and processing alternative fuels. The project is intended to adjust the plant’s kiln for processing alternative fuels and securing new alternative fuel sources. The cement producer aims to control the alternative fuels supply chain for its plant from source to kiln.
The company has also spent Euro2m on upgrades to its Małogoszcz cement plant. These included process optimisation and environmental improvements such as modernising the inlet channel to the rotary kiln cooler, renovating the furnace outlet and installing a new drive system for the mill. The stacks for two kilns were also renovated.
Intercem to supply ball mill to Cem’In’Eu
18 September 2017France: Intercem has won an order to supply Cem’In’Eu with a cement grinding plant. Intercem will supply a Ø 3.20m x 10.00m EGL closed circuit ball mill with a IVS 62 vertical air separator. The groundbreaking ceremony for the unit will be held in October 2017 and the start of production is scheduled for April 2018.
The first compartment of the mill will be equipped with lifting liners to aid coarse grinding. The second compartment will be equipped with a three-step classifying liner system to provide ball sorting with a fine grinding action. An intermediate diaphragm will allow the adjustment of material flow levels to optimise material level in both compartments. The mill will be powered by a 1300kW side drive. Product collection will be arranged by direct separation using a 70,000m3/hr air jet filter.
Intercem will be responsible for plant engineering and documentation, including mechanical, civil and electrical engineering, programming works and documentation, mechanical assembly works and their supervision as well as mechanical and process commissioning and the training for operators. No value for the order has been disclosed.
Cem’In’Eu is a new cement producer with projects planned for sites at Tonneins in Lot et Garonne, at Port Fluvial de Chalon-sur-Saône in Saône et Loire and at Port d’Ottmarsheim in Haut-Rhin. The company plans to invest around Euro20m at each site. It also has development projects in Poland and in the UK.
Cemex participates in European Union industrial efficiency research
15 September 2017UK/Europe: Cemex’s South Ferriby cement plant is participating in the European Union (EU) supported enhanced energy and resource efficiency and performance in process industry operations via onsite and cross-sectorial symbiosis (EPOS) project. Designed to enable cross-sector industrial working, the project highlights case studies exemplifying ways for companies to use wastes from other industries to deliver greater efficiency, save raw materials, and contribute to more sustainable processes.
The South Ferriby plant has worked with other companies, including the INEOS chemical company, to determine how waste from INEOS’s production could be used as part of the cement manufacturing process. In addition Cemex Poland and Cemex Research Group in Switzerland will also represent Cemex in the project.
“It is a privilege for Cemex’s cement plant in South Ferriby to participate in this project, collaborating with other companies and partners across Europe. This helps to ensure that we operate our cement plant as efficiently as possible, while learning lessons that we can apply to our other facilities,” said Kevin Groombridge, South Ferriby Cement Plant Environment Manager.
Driver shortage may affect Polish cement sales
14 September 2017Poland: A shortage of truck drivers may negatively affect cement sales. Vacancies for drivers have grown to the extent that even migrant workers from the Ukraine are unable to meet demand, according to the Polish News Bulletin newspaper. The exodus of drivers from the Ukraine has also reportedly impacted upon that country’s cement market. Industry sources say that railway transport is unlikely to help the situation due to a lack of loading facilities. Cement production rose by 7% year-on-year to 9.4Mt in 2017. Cement sales are expected to reach 16.5Mt in 2017 and 17.5Mt in 2018.