Displaying items by tag: Votorantim Cimentos

Canada/US: Brazil-based Votorantim Cimentos and Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) have completed the transaction to merge their cement operations in North America. After having obtained regulatory approval from authorities in Brazil, Canada and the US, St Marys Cement (Canada), a wholly owned subsidiary of Votorantim Cimentos can now commence with the integration process with McInnis Cement. As part of the transaction, the parties will combine their North American assets in a jointly-held entity. Votorantim Cimentos International, the international investments platform and wholly owned subsidiary of Votorantim Cimentos, will hold 83% and CDPQ will indirectly hold 17% of the shares.

The combined entity will comprise operations in Bowmanville and St Marys, in Ontario, Canada and in Detroit and Charlevoix in Michigan, Dixon in Illinois and Badger in Wisconsin in the US, along with a distribution network concentrated in the Great Lakes region - plus the Port-Daniel–Gascons plant and its distribution operations, including terminals located in Quebec, Ontario, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and the Northeastern region of the US.

Turkey: The Turkish competition authority Rekabat Kurumu has launched a probe into alleged collusion by nine cement producers. The authority said that it is investigating AS Çimento, Bastas Baskent Çimento, Çimsa, Golas Goller Bolgesi Çimento, Konya Çimento, Kupeliler Endustri, Limak Çimento, Oyak Çimento and Brazil-based Votorantim Cimentos.

Spain: Cementos Cosmos and the Cooperativa Apícola del Bierzo have installed 25 bee hives at the Corullón quarry, which supports the integrated Toral de los Vados plant in Leon. The collaboration agreement aims to promote the production of honey, propolis and pollen. The hives will be cared for by the Bierzo Beekeeping Cooperative and the adaptation and maintenance of the land where they will be located will be carried out by Cementos Cosmos. The cement company will also become the preferred customer for the production of the beehives located in the quarry. Following the signing of the agreement plant director Jaime Santoalla said, "we are convinced of the coexistence and synergies between our industry and other sectors of Bierzo, such as the agricultural-food sector.”

Brazil: Votorantim Cimentos’ consolidated net sales were US$6.41bn in 2020, up by 19% year-on-year from US$5.41bn in 2019. Its adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) also rose, by 35% to US$1.21bn from US$899m. The group attributed the growth to increased cement volumes sold in Brazil, Canada and the US. Total global cement sales increased by 8% to 32.4Mt. Net revenue grew in all regions, but the sharpest growth was reported in North America at 43% to US$945m.

Chief financial officer Osvaldo Ayres Filho said, “The past year has been extremely challenging due to the pandemic and its impacts across the planet. We have implemented a contingency plan to protect people's lives and preserve operations. This allowed us to respond with agility both in Brazil and in the other markets in which we have operations, ending the year with increased sales, cash generation growth and the lowest leverage in the past ten years.”

During the year, the group unified its joint-venture in Uruguay, with Cementos Molins, at a single site and merged its Canadian and US businesses under a new 83% owned subsidiary. It suspended its Pecém grinding plant expansion in Brazil due to the coronavirus pandemic and resumed it in September 2020. Completion of the project is scheduled for the first half of 2021. The producer also released its Sustainability Commitments for 2030 in November 2020.

Canada: St Marys Cement, part of Brazil-based Votoronatim Cimentos, has installed a US$19.9m wet scrubber at its Bowmanville cement plant in Ontario. The installation will reduce the plant’s sulphur dioxide (SO₂) emissions by 90%. The producer says it is the first wet scrubber installed at a cement plant in Canada.

Operations Manager Jim Storey said “This investment in technology to improve the plant’s environmental performance has proven to be effective in removing SO₂ produced in the cement manufacturing process. We are also pleased that the scrubber was assembled on-site and installed by local Ontario contractors and crews during our annual scheduled plant shutdown.”

Brazil: Votorantim Cimentos has announced plans to upgrade cement production at its 0.2Mt/yr integrated Corumbá cement plant in Mato Grosso do Sul. The Correio de Corumbá newspaper has reported the value of the planned work as US$2.85m. The investment is intended to improve the plant’s grinding line, modernise an electrical substation system, make changes to its mining operations and generally focus on optimising energy consumption. It also plans to train employees and work on community outreach activities.

Turkey: Brazil-based Votorantim Cimentos has leased three ready-mixed concrete plants from Polat Beton. Dunya News has reported that the facilities are all located in Ankara, Sincan, Kayaş and Gölbaşı respectively.

Spain: A regional court has ruled in favour of Cementos Cosmos in a case brought by local environmental group Bierzo Aire Limpio. The protestors alleged that the company had violated regulations at its Toral de los Vados cement plant in El Bierzo, León. The court ruled that the producer had acted correctly and in continuous communication with the administration.

Brazil: Votorantim Cimentos is testing using dissolvable cement bags in a pilot project with paper and bag manufacturer Klabin. Following development, the new bag type will be tested in a pilot project in the south of the country based around the Rio Branco do Sul cement plant in Paraná state. The bags can be dissolved directly in a mixer when making concrete to speed up the process.

Brazil: Votorantim Cimentos has built a new distribution centre in Campos Novos, Santa Catarina. When it opens in January 2021, the facility will supply a ‘complete portfolio for the civil construction market’ in Santa Catarina, Paraná and Rio Grande do Sul. It will receive goods from six cement and building materials plants in the company’s South Brazil region.

Regional commercial general manager Tony Noritake said, “We invested in this distribution centre to better meet customer demand in the South, expand our presence and optimise costs."