Displaying items by tag: UK

UK: Mineral Products Association Lime (MPA Lime), the body representing the UK lime sector, has launched the Net Negative 2040 Roadmap. The association said that the roadmap sets out the strategy for its to 'go beyond net zero' by 2040. The industry will rely on the deployment of fuel switching, carbon capture, renewable energy sources and green transport technologies, among other approaches. It called on the government to support its aims through the implementation of carbon accounting, subsidisation of renewables and decarbonisation technologies, the development of green hydrogen infrastructure, ensuring that UK lime can remain competitive in the UK and overseas markets.

MPA Lime director Mike Haynes said “Each lever will contribute to decarbonisation – many initiatives are happening already or will come on stream this decade." He added "The combination of using biomass fuels with carbon capture and lime product carbonation will result in removal of 250,000t/yr of atmospheric CO₂, making the sector net negative overall. Other levers, especially indirect emissions and transportation, require broader collaboration and enabling action by government and other industries.”

Through their actions to date, MPA Lime members reduced their absolute CO₂ emissions by 25% between 2005 and 2022.

UK: British Rema has appointed Tony Goodwin as its Group Managing Director. He holds 30 years of experience in industrial powder processing and handling. He was previously the managing director of Oliver Valves. Prior to this he spent much of his career working for Kemutec and related companies, firstly in engineering roles and then in operations.

British Rema Group comprises three divisions: British Rema Process Equipment; British Rema Processing; and British Rema Rotary Engineering. The three companies provide powder processing equipment, contract processing and rotary engineering services to the mineral, chemical and recycling industries.

UK: Carbon8 has appointed Paul Drennan-Durose as its chief executive officer (CEO). He succeeds John Pilkington, who becomes the non-executive chair.
Drennan-Durose holds experience in the sustainable energy sector with both public and private companies, including private equity and venture capital. He previously worked as the CEO of Ineo Partners, Powerhouse Energy Group and Heliex Power. Before this he was the managing director of Poole Process Equipment for seven years in the 2010s. Other roles of note include that of Group Commercial Director - Europe, Africa, Middle East and Asia Pacific for SMP Europe and the managing director of PLW and Fiamm Energy Technology.

Carbon8 is a UK-based company that supplies carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) equipment. Its main investors include EDF Pulse Ventures and Vicat. Notable corporate achievements include deploying its technology at Vicat’s Montalieu-Vercieu cement plant in France, at an EFW plant in the Netherlands and establishing business partnerships with FLSmidth and Return Carbon.

UK: Cemcor has installed a new US$7.54m bag filter at its Cookstown cement plant in County Tyrone. The system will detect signs of bag damage and isolate the affected row of bags for either online maintenance or, if the damage is minor, resealing with process dust.

The Irish News has reported that managing director David Millar said “We are forward thinking at Cemcor and understood it was time to put our money on the line and invest in the plant's efficiencies and sustainable outputs, to protect the environment around us and future-proof the plant itself."

Ireland/US: Shareholders have approved Ireland-based CRH's board recommendation to transition to a US primary listing on the New York Stock Exchange. The company says that it will effect its transition on or around 25 September 2023. This will entail delisting shares from Ireland's Euronext Dublin, while retaining a standard listing on the UK's London Stock Exchange (LSE).

CRH derived 75% of earnings from North America in 2022. It expects the US market to be a key driver of future growth due to the country's growing populace and construction needs.

CEO Albert Manifold said "We are pleased to see such strong shareholder support for the listing transition, as it marks an important milestone in our development and will enable CRH to fully participate in the significant growth opportunities that lie ahead.”

UK: Holcim subsidiary Aggregate Industries has announced the appointment of Thierry Davila as manager of Cauldon cement plant in Staffordshire. Davila has 27 years’ experience in the cement industry, including working on projects affecting Cauldon cement plant since November 2021. Aggregate Industries says that he brings a wealth of global experience and a proven track record in technical capability. In his new role, Davila will focus on strategic operations, including ensuring that the plant can navigate market challenges while providing innovative solutions to customers.

Aggregate Industries CEO Dragan Maksimovic said “Thierry brings an enormous amount of global experience of the cement industry to Cauldon. Having been part of the Holcim Group for almost 20 years, I am confident in Thierry’s ability to drive the business forward and meet the demands of an ever-changing market. I would like to congratulate Thierry on his new appointment, and I look forward to working with him in the coming months.”

UK: SigmaRoc subsidiary CCP has launched Greenbloc Standard, Ultra and Premium. The new designations correspond to 50%, 80% and 100% cement substitution. Professional Builder News has reported that Using Greenbloc Standard reduces structures’ CO₂ emissions by 77% compared with structures built with conventional ordinary Portland cement (OPC)-based blocks. For an average semi-detached house, this is equivalent to 2.7t of CO₂.

CCP general manager Phil Rotheram said “The expansion of our Greenbloc range continues our commitment to sustainable alternatives to our product offering as we fully commit to the challenges of removing embodied carbon from the built environment.”

Greenbloc Ultra featured in a gold medal-winning garden at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2023 in May 2023.

UK: CRH subsidiary Tarmac has pledged its support to the Route to Net Zero initiative to decarbonise the UK's logistics sector. Under the initiative, companies involved in transportation will implement changes aimed at achieving net zero CO₂ emissions by 2050. Tarmac already transports 9Mt/yr of materials around the UK by rail.

Tarmac's logistics director Graham Waters said “Signing up to Logistics UK’s Route to Net Zero pledge marks a further step for our business, underscoring our commitment to eliminating carbon emissions from our extensive UK-wide logistics networks and accelerating this process through collaboration with our haulier partners and the wider industry."

UK: Cemex UK has completed upgrades of its Dove Holes, Selby and Bletchley depots in partnership with MLP Railway Maintenance. As a result of the upgrade, the Selby depot in North Yorkshire can now receive an increased number of wagons per train, and complete turnarounds more quickly. Meanwhile, the producer relayed two reception lines at the Dove Holes depot in Derbyshire and installed new walkways, CCTV and a waterproof display screen for offloading at the Bletchley depot in Buckinghamshire.

Cemex UK’s rail and sea manager Mark Grimshaw-Smith said “It’s important that we continue to invest in our railheads across the UK. This not only ensures that the safety and wellbeing of those who work on our sites is enhanced on an ongoing basis, but it also provides further resilience in the operation, transporting more materials by train and thus taking more trucks off the road.”

US: Continental Cement has ordered a Fuelflex Pyrolyzer alternative fuels combustion system from Denmark-based FLSmidth for installation at its Davenport plant in Buffalo, Iowa. The supplier says that its product offers a lower capital expenditure compared to competing systems, can control NO_x emissions without the need for ammonia water and can be installed without a long shutdown period. This is the first commercial installation of the Fuelflex Pyrolyzer system following a pre-commercial installation at the Mannok cement plant in Northern Ireland, UK, in 2022.

David Loomes, the president of Continental Cement, said “We’re very excited about what the Fuelflex Pyrolyzer will do for our process.” He added, “We’re planning to achieve 55% fossil fuel replacement across the plant, utilising non-hazardous waste that would otherwise go to landfill or incinerators. The economic and environmental benefits of this technology are very significant and a key element of executing our carbon reduction commitment.” Continental Cement, a subsidiary of Summit Materials, has been incorporating waste materials as fuels for more than 30 years.

Jens Jonas Skov Larsen, Head of Capital Sales at FLSmidth, said “Mannok has called the Fuelflex Pyrolyzer a game-changer for the cement industry.” He continued, “This system effectively rearranges the order of the combustion process to make use of hot preheater meal, which is the heat source for the waste fuel pyrolysis. It’s a more efficient way of burning alternative fuels and it comes with a host of benefits, including reduced emissions and a more stable process.”

The installation at Davenport cement plant is expected to start operation in 2024. The full commercial launch for the system is scheduled by 2025. No value for the order has been disclosed.