Displaying items by tag: Texas

US: The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) has blamed the management of Ash Grove Cement’s policies, procedures and controls for the death of a worker at its Midlothian cement plant in May 2016. Roderick Barnes, a maintenance worker aged 46 years, died from a fall from the top of a slurry tank. In its report on the incident the MSHA said that the cement producer failed to provide protection around openings through which workers could fall and that that it failed to use fall prevention and protection devices. The MSHA has issued five citations for violations of the Mine Act is relation to the event.

US: Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua (GCC) has completed its purchase of a selection of assets from Cemex for US$306m. The assets consist of a cement plant located in Odessa in Texas, two cement distribution terminals located in Amarillo and El Paso in Texas and concrete, aggregates, asphalt and building materials businesses in El Paso, Texas and Las Cruces, New Mexico. The acquisition comprises all facilities, equipment and inventories. The purchase was financed with internal funds and an unsecured loan of US$254m.

“This acquisition represents a significant advance in our strategy of sustainable cement growth in the US, in markets contiguous to those of GCC ́s geographic footprint. With these assets and colleagues joining the company, we will enhance the competitive advantage of our logistics system, expand our product portfolio and optimise our operations by sharing best practices,” said Enrique Escalante, chief executive officer of GCC.

US: Cemex and Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua (GCC) have amended the terms of a sale of assets to GCC previously announced in early May 2016. The assets being sold by an affiliate of Cemex to an affiliate of GCC in the US have changed and mainly consist of Cemex’s cement plant in Odessa, Texas, two cement terminals and the building materials business in El Paso, Texas and Las Cruces, New Mexico. Cemex’s cement plant in Lyons, Colorado and cement terminal in Florence, Colorado are no longer part of the assets being sold to GCC. Upon closing of this transaction GCC will pay Cemex US$306m.

The sale is subject to customary closing conditions, including approval from the US competition authorities and GCC’s shareholders, as well as GCC obtaining financing to purchase the assets. The deal is expected to be completed before the end of 2016.

US: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) have agreed a settlement with Cemex, under which the company will invest approximately US$10m to cut air pollution at five of its cement plants to resolve alleged violations of the Clean Air Act. Under the consent decree lodged in the District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, Cemex will also pay a US$1.69m civil penalty, conduct energy audits at the five plants, and spend US$150,000 on energy efficiency projects to mitigate the effects of past excess emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) from its facilities.

“This settlement requires Cemex to use state-of-the-art technology to reduce harmful air pollution, improving public health in vulnerable communities across the South and Southeast,” said Cynthia Giles, Assistant Administrator for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “EPA is committed to tackling clean air violations at the largest sources, cutting the pollutants that cause respiratory illnesses like asthma.”

The five Cemex cement plants affected by the deal are located in Demopolis in Alabama, Louisville in Kentucky, Knoxville in Tennessee and New Braunfels and Odessa in Texas. The Knox County, Tennessee and Louisville, Kentucky air pollution control authorities participated in this settlement. Cemex is required to install pollution control technology that will reduce emissions of NO_x and establish strict limits for sulphur dioxide (SO₂) emissions. The cement producer will install and continuously operate a selective non-catalytic reduction system for controlling NO_x at the five plants and meet emission limits that are consistent with the current best available control technology for NO_x. EPA estimates this will result in NO_x emissions reductions of over 4000t/yr. Each facility will also be subject to strict SO₂ emission limits.

This settlement is part of EPA’s National Enforcement Initiative to control harmful emissions from large sources of pollution, which includes cement plants, under the Clean Air Act’s Prevention of Significant Deterioration requirements. The total combined SO₂ and NO_x emission reductions secured from cement plant settlements under this initiative will exceed 75,000t/yr once all the required pollution controls have been installed and implemented.

The settlement is subject to a 30-day public comment period and final court approval.