Displaying items by tag: Shipping

China: NovaAlgoma Cement Carriers has confirmed an order for a 38,000t methanol dual-fuel pneumatic cement carrier by Zhejiang Xinle Shipbuilding, for delivery in 2027.

The vessel will be chartered under a long-term contract by Holcim. Other features include an air lubricating system and a waste heat recovery system, which will recycle exhaust gases to generate electricity.

“By increasing the quantity intake and burning green methanol, the CO₂ emissions on these shipments will be reduced by more than 60% per year in comparison to current freight flows, ie 0.18Mt of CO₂ reduction over a period of 10 years,” NovaAlgoma said.

India: Ambuja Cements will invest US$286m in two cement carriers and eight clinker carriers. The company expects to finalise a shipbuilding contract within 15 days, with Cochin Shipyard and Swan Defence and Heavy Industries under consideration.

Each 38,500t Handymax cement carrier will cost US$45.8m, while each 9200t clinker carrier will cost US$22.9m. The clinker carriers will have a 30m beam, 4m draft and 150m length, increasing cargo capacity from the traditional 3000t to 9200t per trip.

Finland: Finland-based technology company Wärtsilä will supply a complete propulsion package for the new methanol dual-fuel cement carrier from NovaAlgoma Cement Carriers. The ship is under construction at Zhejiang Xinle Shipbuilding in China and is expected to launch in late 2026. The contract includes two Wärtsilä 32 engines, one Wärtsilä 25 auxiliary engine, two gearboxes, two controllable pitch propellers, one tunnel thruster, three selective catalytic reduction systems, the propulsion control system, two shaft generators and engine accessory items, with deliveries starting in November 2025.

Sweden-based Climeon recently won an order to install its organic rankine cycle waste heat recovery technology, HeatPower 300, on the vessel.

India: UltraTech Cement has begun transporting mineral gypsum via National Waterway 1 (Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly river system) in a pilot project supported by the Inland Waterways Authority of India and Inland & Coastal Shipping, a Shipping Corporation of India subsidiary.

The consignment is being shipped from Haldia port, West Bengal, to the Gaighat terminal in Patna, Bihar. It will then be transported to UltraTech’s Pataliputra Cement Works grinding unit in Bihar. UltraTech is reportedly the first Indian cement company to utilise National Waterway 1 for large-scale gypsum transport, with the aim to cut CO₂ emissions and ease congestion on roads and railways.

Philippines: Davao International Container Terminal (DICT) has entered into a joint venture with Philcement to construct a dedicated berth for cement and cementitious material shipments in Davao, reports Port Calls magazine. It will oversee the construction of a 200-metre bulk terminal at berth five. Construction will commence in November 2024 and operation is expected by mid-2026. The terminal is valued at US$12.5m and will handle 2Mt/yr of cement for distribution across Mindanao, with shipping to other parts of the country being considered. Additional equipment and construction costs for a cement terminal are estimated at around US$41m.

New Zealand: Golden Bay Cement has resolved the breakdown of its Marine Vessel Aotearoa Chief (MVAC) earlier than anticipated, returning the vessel to service after necessary checks with marine authorities. The company made use of alternative transport options to distribute cement and sourced alternative cement supplies due to the disruption.

The earlier resolution has resulted in a reduced impact on earnings, estimated to be on the lower end of US$10m – 30m.

New Zealand: Fletcher Building says that a mechanical issue with a cement carrier ship is causing operational business for its Golden Bay Cement subsidiary. The Marine Vessel Aotearoa Chief (MVAC) ship is currently docked at Northport while inspections and repairs are made by the owner. The New Zealand Herald newspaper has reported that the ship is owned by China Navigation Company, an operating arm of the Hong Kong-based Swire. The ship normally transports cement around the North Island from Golden Bay’s cement plant near Whangārei. The cement producer added that “The timeframe required to make the necessary repairs and source replacement parts, is not known at this time.” Fletcher Building’s preliminary assessment is that it expects the impact on its 2025 financial year earnings to be up to US$18m.

Golden Bay has enacted its contingency plans to cope with the outage and is talking to its customers. It is using alternative transport options to distribute cement. including the use of an existing coastal barge and the greater use of road and rail options. The company is also investigating longer-term solutions, which include potentially sourcing the use of alternative cement supplies from domestic and offshore suppliers along with securing the use of a replacement ship if required.

Adani Group’s subsidiary Ambuja Cements signed a deal this week to buy Penna Cement for US$1.25bn. The agreement adds 14Mt/yr of cement production capacity to the group with a focus in the south of India. The acquisition is a big step towards the group’s target of reaching a capacity of 140Mt/yr by 2028. Ajay Kapur, the head of Ambuja Cements, also singled out the advantage the company hopes to gain from taking control of Penna Cement’s terminals saying that they would “prove to be a gamechanger by giving access to the eastern and southern parts of peninsular India.” The move is expected to increase the group’s market share in India by 2%, and by 8% in South India.

Penna Cement operates four integrated plants in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana with a capacity of 7Mt/yr. Two of these units also include waste heat recovery installations and one has a captive power plant. It runs two grinding plants in Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra with a capacity of 3Mt/yr. Another integrated plant is being built at Jodhpur in Rajasthan and a grinding plant at Krishnapatnam in Andhra Pradesh. Finally, the company owns four bulk cement terminals at Kolkata, Gopalpur, Karaikal and Kochi in India, one at Colombo in Sri Lanka and it also owns a 25,000t cement carrier.

Adani Group’s march towards that target of 140Mt/yr by 2028 started off in mid-2022 when it purchased Ambuja Cements and ACC from Holcim. This gave it a starting capacity of 68Mt/yr in the cement sector. Various smaller additions followed including new plants at Ametha and Dahej and the acquisitions of Asian Cement and Concrete, MyHome Industries and Sanghi Industries. The latter company was the biggest of these purchases. Once the in-progress projects from Penna Cement are built, Adani Group should have a capacity of 93Mt/yr. Another 20Mt/yr is reportedly at various stages of execution. The remaining 27Mt/yr is described as being ‘blueprint ready.’

Generally, the local financial press has been in favour of the transaction agreeing with the geographic advantages of Adani Group increasing its presence in the southern states. The benefits of the high number of railway sidings at Penna Cement’s plants were also commented upon as a means for Ambuja Cements to reduce its costs per tonne of cement. The logistics benefit from the port terminals is also expected by Adani Group’s chief financial officer to reduce the group’s logistics costs with an impact expected within the next year. However, it has been reported that Penna Cement’s operating performance had been weaker in the last financial year due to low sales volumes, poor operational efficiency and high coal costs. A takeover by Adani Group could certainly fix the latter two issues. Yet, it has also been reported that competition in the cement markets in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana is up, due to a mismatch between supply and demand. So, improving Penna Cement’s capacity utilisation in these regions might be harder to solve than simply being absorbed into Adani Group.

India’s two largest cement producers both have plans in motion to mount up production capacity by the end of the decade in what has been dubbed ‘the battle of the billionaires.’ The market leader is UltraTech Cement and it has shown reluctance to cede ground to the cement newcomer Adani Group. The former company’s current target is to make it to just under 190Mt/yr by 2027. It said it had a capacity of 152Mt/yr in May 2024. It is ahead of Adani Group by this measure but there is still plenty of scope for surprises. Given the rivalry between the companies there is a regular stream of speculation about which of the smaller cement producers they might be about to buy at any given time. For example, in October 2023 HeidelbergCement India was rumoured to be courting offers from UltraTech Cement, Adani Group and JSW Cement. Last week, Adani Group was reportedly interested in buying either Saurashtra Cement, the cement business of Jaiprakash Associates, Vadraj Cement or… Penna Cement. Occasionally the rumours are true after all. UltraTech Cement remains in first place for now but the situation may change.

Comoros: Cimentos Comores is considering finding temporary sources of bagged cement after its regular bulk deliveries via the Port of Moroni, Grand Comore, became disrupted. Al-Watwan News has reported that a malfunctioning landing buoy has prevented cargo ships from landing at the port.

Cimentos Comores said “In the absence of a technical solution, we will be forced to cancel the operations.”

Australia: Adbri has entered into an agreement to obtain a new limestone carrier for its South Australian cement operations, to replace its MV Accolade II vessel currently in operation there. Specifically, the new carrier will supply raw materials for the Birkenhead cement plant. It is 100% battery electric capable. Adbri has hired marine transport company CSL to supply and operate the vessel. The contract will last until 2043, with the option for two five-year extensions.

Adbri chief executive officer Mark Irwin said “The new vessel will support Adbri to increase cement volumes at Birkenhead, while also supporting the production of lower carbon products such as EvoCem cement, which uses limestone as a clinker substitute.” He continued “The new vessel is expected to start operations with a hybrid system, where electric power will replace about 25% of its diesel fuel. This is expected to reduce Scope 1 emissions by about 40% compared to the current emission intensity seen in the Accolade II operation. By 2031, we aim to achieve 100% electric power capability, further reducing Scope 1 emissions to less than 10% of the current emission intensity seen in the Accolade II operation. This milestone is a crucial step forward in our on-going net zero emission journey.”