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Saudi Arabia: Sinoma Overseas Development completed start-up testing and hand-over of new grinding mills at Arabian Cement Company’s Rabigh cement on 21 February 2024. The supplier said that the delivery was in accordance with the terms of the original contract between its parent company, China National Building Material (CNBM), and the producer.

Sinoma Overseas Development attributed deviations from the project’s previously announced schedule to the need for discussions with CNBM about remaining project works, equipment operation plans, procurement schedules and acceptance tests. As provided for in the contract, the work will be subject to a 5% delay penalty.

UAE: Emirates Steel Arkan has concluded a partnership for the deployment of Finland-based Magsort’s technology in steel slag processing at its Al Ain cement plant. ZAWYA News has reported that the partners expect the technology to help reduce the plant’s limestone and fuel consumption. This will reduce its CO₂ emissions by 15%.

Emirates Steel Arkan CEO Saeed Ghumran Al Remeithi said "Green solutions such as this will help decarbonise the sector's value chain."

Canada: Heidelberg Materials North America has awarded Technip Energies a front-end engineering and design (FEED) contract for its carbon capture project at the Edmonton cement plant in Alberta. The project will deploy Shell’s Cansolv CO₂ capture system to remove 1Mt/yr from the plant’s flue gases. Carbon capture will commence in late 2026, subject to funding finalisation.

Heidelberg Materials North America’s Northwest regional vice president, cement operations, Joerg Nixdorf said “We are excited to take this latest step in our journey to produce the world’s first net-zero cement.” Nixdorf added “With each milestone we come closer to realising our vision of leading the decarbonisation of the cement industry.”

Technip Energies’ senior vice president of decarbonization solutions Christophe Malaurie said “We are pleased to have been selected by Heidelberg Materials North America to provide the FEED of this groundbreaking project in Canada. Leveraging our carbon capture solution powered by the Shell Cansolv CO₂ capture system, we are committed to supporting the decarbonisation of the cement industry and Heidelberg towards the production of net-zero cement.”

Peru: Cementos Pacasmayo recorded an 8% year-on-year drop in its full-year sales in 2023. Group sales volumes of cement and concrete fell by 14%. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) also dropped, by 2% to US$125m, influenced by a US$9.47m impairment due to the replacement of its former vertical kilns with a new kiln. The producer further attributed the decline to low construction activity in the private and public sectors, as well the effects of Cyclone Yaku in early 2023.

France: CRH subsidiary Eqiom has commenced the first phase of its K6 decarbonisation project at its Lumbres cement plant in Hauts-de-France. In this phase, the producer will build a new production line that uses alternative fuels. This will reduce the plant’s specific CO₂ emissions per tonne of clinker by 20%. Eqiom says that this will pave the way for future carbon capture efforts at the plant, with a view to achieving net zero CO₂ clinker production.

Mexico: Holcim México will invest US$55m in the construction of a new cement mill at its Macuspana plant in Tabasco state. The producer says that the mill will increase the plant's cement capacity by 50% to 1.5Mt/yr. This will lead to an increase in the plant’s total workforce to 300 people.

General director Jaime Hill said "This investment in Tabasco reflects our firm conviction in the potential of the Mexican southeast and our commitment to the sustainable development of the region. Through this expansion, we will not only increase our capacity to supply the states of Tabasco, Chiapas, Campeche, Yucatán and Quintana Roo, but also reinforce our role in the decarbonisation of the construction industry, offering low-emission products like our cements from the ECOPlanet range."

Brazil: Secil subsidiary Supremo Secil Cimentos will invest US$20.3m in an upcoming expansion of its Adrianópolis cement plant. Commencing in July 2024, the expansion will raise the plant’s clinker capacity by 10% and enable it to increase its alternative fuel (AF) substitution rate from 25 – 30% to 40%, and eventually to 50% by 2030. To date, AF use at the plant has reduced its cumulative consumption of petcoke by 100,000t.

CEO Paulo Nascentes highlighted the transformative impact of the Adrianópolis plant on its host community, with its initial investment of US$176m and a subsequent US$41.7m in previous upgrades to date. "One of the reasons why the Paraná government allowed the plant was because Adrianópolis was very neglected. The arrival of Supremo transformed the city," he said.

India: Nuvoco Vistas has commissioned a 1.2Mt/yr cement mill at its Haryana Bhiwani cement plant in Haryana. This expansion will help Nuvoco Vistas to raise its production volumes in Northern India and to diversify its product offering.

Managing director Jayakumar Krishnaswamy said “We are set to seize the opportunities. We continue to emphasise quality and innovation, and secure a larger market share in the North while retaining our leadership position in the East. On the ready-mix concrete end of the value chain, we have also commissioned five new plants in the current fiscal, bringing our total to 56 plants pan-India.”

Saudi Arabia: China National Building Material (CNBM) subsidiary Sinoma CDI has won a US$6m contract to upgrade cement and raw materials conveyors at Riyadh Cement Company’s Riyadh cement plant. The producer has opted for elevator conveyors for mechanical transportation, in place of its existing pneumatic conveyors. It expects this to increase energy efficiency and reduce necessary maintenance. The project is due for delivery in early 2025.

Riyadh Cement Company CEO Shoeil Al-Ayed said that the project aligns with the producer’s strategic energy reduction initiatives.

UK: Aggregate Industries has successfully removed gas duct sections from the electrostatic precipitation filter at its Cauldon cement plant in Staffordshire. This will make way for the installation of a new CTP Team process kiln bag filter, following an annual shutdown.

Cauldon plant capital expenditure manager Mark Powling said “The new bag filter not only provides the best available technology, but will enable the Cauldon plant to optimise its plant performance, driving its decarbonisation and alternative fuel strategies. Thanks to the project team for their efforts and hard work to date.”