Displaying items by tag: Upgrade

France: Lafarge France has ignited the new kiln at its Martres-Tolosane cement plant following a Euro120m upgrade. Local press has reported that the upgrade replaced the plant’s existing kilns and preheater tower with entirely new equipment. The new kiln has tripled the plant’s capacity, to 2.1Mt/yr from 0.7Mt/yr. Meanwhile, the new preheater tower will help to reduce the plant’s electricity consumption by over 20%. As a result of the upgrade, the Martres-Tolosane plant can now support an alternative fuels (AF) substitution rate of 60%, compared to 20% beforehand. Lafarge France aims to carry out further work to reach 85% AF substitution at the plant by 2027. Other planned projects include the installation of a carbon capture system.

Lafarge France chief executive officer François Petry said “We are going to create a research and innovation centre here dedicated to the capture of CO₂, with the ambition of ultimately making the Martres-Tolosane plant net zero carbon.”

India: UltraTech Cement announced planned new capital expenditure (CAPEX) investments worth US$1.56bn to grow its production capacity, beginning in the 2026 financial year (1 April 2025 – 31 March 2026). The Telegraph newspaper has reported that the growth will expand UltraTech Cement’s capacity by 13% to 187Mt. 33.8Mt-worth of this (18%) will be in its native West India, 40.4Mt-worth (22%) in East India, 36.2Mt-worth (19%) in North India, 35.7Mt-worth (19%) in Central India and 35.5Mt-worth (19%) in Central India, with the remainder situated overseas. The new capacity consists of four new production facilities and four upgrades to existing facilities, supported by four new cement terminals. The producer says that it will come online in a phased manner, up to an unspecified end date.

Kumar Mangalam Birla, chair of parent company Aditya Birla, said "Over the past seven years, UltraTech has strategically invested over US$6bn to support India's rapidly changing infrastructure landscape. Our fresh commitment of US$1.56bn underscores our deep-rooted belief in India's economic potential. With each investment, we have not only expanded our footprint, but also empowered India in meeting its need for housing, roads and other vital infrastructure."

US: Holcim US will invest US$100m in an expansion to raise its Ste. Genevieve cement plant’s capacity by 15% to 4.6Mt/yr. The expansion will involve the installation of a fifth vertical roller mill (VRM) for cement grinding and a new mineral component addition system, alongside a rail-loadout expansion. The producer says that the expanded plant will have lower net CO₂ emissions than before. Construction is set to commence in 2024.

Toufic Tabbara, head of Holcim’s North America region, said “With an emphasis on achieving the highest levels of environmental performance and operational efficiency, Ste. Genevieve has been the leader in US cement manufacturing since it was built in 2009. This investment will ensure we maintain that leadership in supporting the sustainable growth of our nation’s infrastructure and residential construction while accelerating net carbon reduction across the built environment.”

Belgium: The municipal council of Evergem has advised planning authorities to reject Cemminerals’ application to expand it Ghent grinding plant to 1.6Mt/yr in production capacity. The Het Nieuwsblad newspaper has reported that the expansion will entail the construction of a new grinding unit and six storage silos. Cemminerals currently holds a licence to produce 700,000t/yr at the site.

Councillor Josse Verdegem said that 400 residents signed a petition against the planned expansion of the Ghent grinding plant. He said that dust from the plant ‘regularly’ covered solar panels, cars and garden furniture. Residents have also complained about its noise and vibrations.

Dominican Republic: Domicem held a ceremony marking the lighting up of the kiln on the new second production line at its Sabana Grande de Palenque cement plant in San Cristóbal province in mid-October 2023. Company engineers, staff from China-based CBMI Construction and representatives from parent company Colacem were present for the event. The cement company signed a contract with China-based Sinoma Construction for a 3500t/day clinker production line in 2021. The project had a reported investment of US$120m. The official inauguration of the new line is scheduled to take place on 22 November 2023 and the President of the Dominican Republic is expected to attend.

Croatia: Nexe Group has completed a US$3.3m upgrade to its Našice cement plant. SeeNews has reported that the project consisted of efficiency-increasing upgrades to the plant and other buildings at the site, and the construction of a solar power plant. The producer says that this will reduce the 600,000t/yr-capacity cement plant’s total energy consumption by 1.56GWh/yr.

The Našice cement plant is the site of an on-going expansion and carbon capture system installation project.

Bulgaria: Heidelberg Materials subsidiary Devnya Cement has commenced construction of the ANRAV.beta carbon capture pilot unit at its Devnya cement plant near Varna. Construction will take ‘a few months,’ followed by a pilot trial lasting 12 – 24 months. The ANRAV system will rely on OxyCal oxygen-enriched burner technology to eventually capture 800,000t/yr of CO₂ from 3Mt/yr of plant flue emissions. The project has Euro190m in grants from the EU Innovation Fund and is scheduled for delivery in 2028.

Heidelberg Materials’ Northern and Eastern Europe-Central Asia regional director Ernest Jelito said “The OxyCal technology we will be trialling in Devnya is a crucial addition to our portfolio of capture technologies. Obtaining solid operational data from industrial pilots like this is essential to ensure the successful implementation of projects under our comprehensive CCUS investment programme. At the same time, we can demonstrate an economically feasible way to decarbonise carbon-intensive industries in Eastern Europe.”

Bulgaria: Titan Cement subsidiary Zlatna Panega Cement plans to invest Euro11m in sustainability-enhancing upgrades to its Zlatnopanegki cement plant in Lovech Province. The work centres around a Euro7m alternative fuels (AF) upgrade, to raise the plant’s AF substitution rate to 70% from 50% in 2022. Besides this, the producer will also invest Euro4m in the construction of a solar power plant at the facility. The solar power plant is scheduled for commissioning in March 2024. General manager Adamantios Frantzis said that the plant will subsequently move on to its ‘next big project,’ consisting of a Euro35 – 50m upgrade, in 2026 – 2028.

Zlatna Panega Cement invested Euro5.7m in capital expenditure throughout 2022, more than double its investments of Euro2.6m in 2021. It is committed to interim CO₂ reduction targets of 5000t/yr (Scope 1) and 3000t/yr (Scope 2 and 3), and net zero CO₂ emissions by 2050.

US: Ash Grove Cement plans to build a new cement mill at its cement plant in Durkee, Oregon. The project is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2024. The upgrade is intended to allow the plant to manufacture low-carbon cement products.

Serge Schmidt, the president of Ash Grove Cement, said "The transition to low carbon cement production and reducing our environmental footprint is a top priority for Ash Grove Cement. We are always seeking new ways to improve our sustainability performance while providing high-quality cement solutions to our customers. This state-of-the-art finish mill at our Durkee plant will strengthen Ash Grove's position as a leader in low-carbon cement across the Western US."

Romania: Holcim Romania has committed to an investment of over Euro25m to increase the production capacity of its cement plant in Campulung by approximately 20%. This would represent an expansion from 0.76Mt/yr to 0.9Mt/yr, according to the Argeşul newspaper. The company says that the investment will address both the existing need for more cement in the domestic construction market. It will also enhance the sustainability of the plant’s operation, streamline logistics and reduce the volume of CO2 emissions from the long-distance transport of building materials constructions.