Displaying items by tag: development

Russia: Russian producers sold 2.4Mt of cement in January 2020, up by 9.6% from 2.2Mt in January 2019. This is in line with Unioncement’s optimistic forecast of 6% year-on-year demand growth. The coming construction season promises sustained growth due to the planned renovation of housing stock, the implementation of integrated development projects and an increased share of roads built using cement concrete, in line with the country’s 2020 Housing and Urban Environment programme and President Putin’s social initiatives.

Spain: The Port Authority of Gijón granted Cemex España a 30-year concession for use of 2480m² of the El Musel terminal for unloading, storage and bagging on 20 December 2019, subject to the Mexican company’s use of the facilities for a minimum of 50,000t/yr of cement and derived products for the first two years of the arrangement, 0.1Mt/yr for the subsequent three years, and 0.15Mt/yr thereafter. La Nueva España newspaper has reported that Cemex España applied for the concession in February 2019. Its plans consist of a Euro5.0m investment in a development including two 6000t-capacity silos, a 44m crane and bagging facilities. Cemex España will take an estimated 10 months to complete the works from beginning the project in early 2020.

India: The government of the state of Odisha will invest US$1.25bn in infrastructure development, including construction of several industrial facilities. These will include a 1.0Mt/yr integrated plant owned by JSW Cement subsidiary Shiva Cement and a total of 4.0Mt/yr grinding capacity in new Shiva Cement and Shree Cement plants. The projects will source their cement from Odisha’s existing installed capacity of 7.3Mt/yr, consisting of 3.8Mt/yr integrated and 3.5Mt/yr grinding capacity at plants owned and operated by Dalmia Bharat’s OCC India, Toshali Cement, UltraTech Cement and Lafarge Holcim’s ACC Cement.

India: The Union Council of India has approved a US$1.4bn distress fund to help developers finish partially completed residential developments. Business Today has suggested that the financing, which prioritises affordable and middle-income housing projects, will bolster demand for cement producers. The launch of the scheme follows India’s decision not to join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership on 4 November 2019, for which it stated reasons of a trade deficit with 11 of the 15 other signatories and the rejection of its proposed three-tier structure for phasing out tariffs.

Oman: Four French investors and technology suppliers, including Fives and Suez, have created a syndicate to develop business opportunities in the Special Economic Zone Authority of Duqm. The other partners are CMA CGM and EDF Renewables. The companies intend to assess various investment options in the area and develop them. In particular, the syndicate has an interest in a ‘global approach to cement factory ecosystems’ and related facilities including transport facilities, a solar power generation plant and the production of alternative fuels.

Cuba: The Nuevitas cement plant will test LC3 cement, according to the Adelante newspaper. LC3 is a blend of limestone and calcined clay that reduces the amount of clinker used. The plant is one of three units in the country earmarked for upgrades in 2018.

UK: The owner of the former cement plant at Weardale, which has planning permission for a multi-million pound eco village, is working to finding a new use for the land. Lafarge UK sold the former Blue Circle cement plant in 2015, after plans to create a green energy village on the land ground to a halt due to the recession.

Durham County Council said it was still keen to support the development of the site by any interested party. A spokesperson for the owner said, “The owners are continuing to work with the council, who are very supportive, to find a solution for the works site. The new owners believe any solution has to be demand led. Although the planning consent for the eco village is still live, all parties recognise that with an estimated cost of delivery in excess of Euro110m, it was never likely to be built.”

Last Wednesday 9 August 2017 marked the 15th anniversary of the closure in 2002 and councillors and former employees have expressed frustration that the site remained empty, despite millions of pounds being spent developing the eco-village scheme so far.

China: A new special economic development zone in the north of Hebei province is expected to significantly boost demand for cement in the region. President Xi Jinping announced that that the new development named Xiongan New Area would be built southwest of Beijing, according to the ET Net News Agency. The development will be on the same scale as Shenzhen and Shanghai Pudong. Using these previous projects as a benchmark HSBC Global Research estimated that Shanghai Pudong uses around 6Mt/yr and that the region had used 133Mt since its creation in the early 1990s.

BBMG’s shares spiked following the announcement. The largest cement producer in the Beijing-Tianjing-Hebei area is widely expected to benefit from the project. After its restructuring with Jidong Cement it will hold 57% of cement production capacity in the region.

Australia: Adelaide Brighton has raised concerns about a South Australia state plan to build housing and tourism facilities near to its Birkenhead cement plant in Adelaide. At a public meeting held by the Development Assessment Commission, a local planning body, the cement producer expressed its concerns that building more housing would create more complaints about the plant’s activities, according to the Portside Messenger newspaper. It added that the government should consider building buffers to reduce noise and dust pollution from the site. The local government wants to build a tourism development near Cruickshank’s Beach and the cement plant.

Sri Lanka: Insee Cement has signed research and development partnership deal’s with the Universities of Peradeniya, Moratuwa and Ruhuna. The agreements are intended to enhance the local construction industry through education, innovation and knowledge sharing, according to the Sunday Observer newspaper. The agreement was signed by Janaka Weerakoon of Siam City Cement and Upul Dissanayake of the University of Peradeniya, Ananda Jayawardena of the University of Moratuwa and SGJN Senanayake of the University of Ruhuna. Insee Cement was previously known as Holcim Lanka before it was purchased by Thailand’s Siam Cement in 2016.