Displaying items by tag: Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan: Uzbekistan imported 3.27Mt of cement in 2019, down by 6.8% year-on-year from 3.51Mt in 2018. The value of cement imported fell by 13% to US$154m from US$176m. Trend newspaper has reported that cement imports from Kazakhstan fell by 32% to 0.97Mt from 1.43Mt. Imports from Tajikistan and Turkmenistan also fell, but rose by 85% from Iran, to 0.59Mt from 0.32Mt.

Uzbekistan, which has a 12.9Mt/yr installed cement production capacity, removed its zero rate of customs duty on cement in October 2019 in order to help align domestic demand with production.

Uzbekistan: The State Committee on Ecology and Environmental Protection (SCEEP) has suspended operations at SingLida’s 0.1Mt/yr integrated Ahtachi plant in Andijan region. Trend News has reported that, following an audit of clinker production between 12 February 2019 and 21 February 2019, the cyclones had failed to meet lawful standards of dust collection. Rates varied between 53% and 61% dust collection, compared to a design capacity of 100%. The government body said that it had given ‘instructions for prompt elimination of deficiencies and reduction of pollutant emissions into the air,’ and has suspended operations of the clinker line and mill until such a time as the problem is resolved.

Uzbekistan: The State Committee of Uzbekistan for Ecology and Environmental Protection plans to create a system of monitoring stations for automatic measurement of air pollution, including particulate matter (PM), throughout the country. Part of this will include the installation of automatic emissions sampling and analysis stations at a number of industrial plants, as well as static monitoring stations within and near plant sites, including in the cement sector. Installation will be at the cost of the industrial facility.

In late 2019 the State Committee for Ecology, together with the Ministry of Health and Uzhydromet, took samples of air from 13 cement plants, finding that five greatly exceeded international norms for dust emissions. Based on the results of the audit, the committee has developed a draft government decree on strengthening environmental control over cement plants. If the document is approved, then all existing cement manufacturers will be obliged to install automatic sampling stations for analysis of air pollution by 1 January 2022, as well as stationary posts in the adjacent territory at their own expense.

Tajikistan: Tajikistan produced 4.20Mt of cement in 2019; up by 11% from 3.80Mt in 2018. Cement exports in the period rose by 11% year-on-year to 1.55Mt from 1.40Mt. 2018’s exports amounted to 0.89Mt (64%) to Uzbekistan, 0.58Mt (41%) to Afghanistan and 0.08Mt (5.8%) to Krygyzstan. Asia-Plus News has reported that tightened pollution legislation in China has driven Chinese-based producers, which accounted for over 90% of Tajik production in 2018, to relocate operations to their country’s western neighbour.

Uzbekistan: Chinese investors have announced the launch of a 0.9Mt/yr integrated cement plant in the Fergana region of Uzbekistan as a result of a total investment of US$113m. Trend News has reported that a second phase of work beginning in May 2020 will further increase the cement plant’s production capacity. This is one of five upcoming Chinese-owned integrated plants in Uzbekistan, with a shared capacity of 6.0Mt/yr.

Iran: Shahrood Cement Company, which operates a 1.9Mt/yr integrated cement plant in Shahrood in north-eastern Iran, produced over 0.2Mt of cement over the nine month period ending 21 December 2019. Semnan province Industry, Mine and Trade Organisation chair Behrouz Asvadi said that all of the cement produced by the company was exported to countries on the Caspian Sea as well as to Afghanistan and Uzbekistan. Revenue over the period was US$5.06m. The company is meeting to discuss issues in shipping and crediting.

Iran: Cement producers in Iran reported growth of 22% year-on-year in exports of cement and clinker over the eight months between 21 March 2019 and 21 November 2019 to 11.4Mt from 9.34Mt. The Financial Tribune newspaper has reported that 37 countries received Iranian cement or clinker over the period. The leading importers of cement were Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Kazakhstan and Russia. Clinker markets included Iraq, the UAE and China.

Uzbekistan: The value of 11-month cement imports in the period ending 30 November 2019 was US$0.147bn, up by 12% year-on-year from US$0.132bn between 1 January 2019 and 30 November 2018. The total value of construction projects in Uzbekistan in the eleven months ending 30 November 2019 was US$61.4bn, up by 120% from US$51.2bn in the corresponding period of 2018. The total value of imported building materials was US$1.22bn, representing a 12% year-on-year increase from US$1.09bn. Cement was among US$152m of commodities imported to Uzbekistan from Iran, according to the Israel Defense newspaper.

Uzbekistan: Russia’s Eurocement has revealed that construction work underway at its 2.0Mt/yr integrated Akhangarancement cement plant in Tahskent region includes the installation of a second plant on the site, bringing its total capacity to 5.0Mt/yr. Trend News Agency has reported that suppliers have delivered 4500t of machinery to Akhangarancement, including a clinker refrigerator, clinker conveyor and heat exchanger as well as electrical equipment and building materials for a raw materials warehouse. Eurocement’s total investment in the project has amounted to US$200m.

Eurocement Group Holding International president Mikhail Skorohod said, “Taking into account the growing needs of the Uzbek market in building materials, Eurocement is committed to creation of a building materials cluster based around the Akhangarancement plant.” The company said that the upgraded 5.0Mt/yr plant would become operational in 2020.

Uzbekistan: The State Committee for Ecology and Environmental Protection plans to ask cement plants to establish sampling and analysis stations for sources of air pollution by the start of 2022. If they don’t the government will take measures up to and including suspension of production, according to the Trend News Agency. Uzbekistan was ranked in 16th place by AirVisual in a listing of the countries with the most air pollution in 2018.