India: Adani Group has taken a total US$2.33bn-worth of new loans over the two-and-a-half month period since the publication of a report into the group's activities by US-based shortseller Hindenburg Research on 24 January 2023. The report concluded with a finding of 'numerous issues of suspected fraud' by Adani Group. Adani Group explained at the time that all findings were 'stale, baseless and discredited.' The Times of India newspaper has reported that the group's net debt rose by 17% year-on-year to US$22.6bn on 8 June 2023. Adani Group's energy sector subsidiaries raised US$2.01bn-worth (86%) of the debt.

Adani Group completely paid off loans used in its US$6.4bn acquisition of Holcim India on 6 June 2023.

Philippines: Holcim Philippines introduced Holcim Optima, a blended Portland limestone cement (PLC), on the Philippine market on 8 June 2023. The Business Mirror newspaper has reported that Holcim Optima cement offers 10% reduced CO₂ emissions compared to ordinary Portland cement (OPC).

President and CEO Horia Adrian said that Holcim Optima cement 'delivers the same strength, workability and durability as OPC and remains compatible with other cement additives such as slag and fly ash. The new product is best used in large building projects and available in bulk.' Adrian added "It is a timely product for the Philippines, as infrastructure building accelerates and green demand grows."

India: Superbrands Media India named JK Lakshmi Cement as its 'Superbrand' in the Grey Cement category at the Superbrand 2023 - 2024 awards on 7 June 2023, the Orissa Diary newspaper has reported. The producer beat its competitors across numerous categories that measure branding success.

President and director Shri Arun Shukla said "This accolade serves as a resounding validation of our steadfast commitment to delivering cement products of unparalleled quality and our ceaseless endeavours to reiterate the robustness and dependability of our brand. We wholeheartedly express our deepest gratitude to our esteemed customers and valued partners for their resolute trust and support, which have played an instrumental role in propelling us to this notable achievement."

US: American Fiber Cement Corporation (AFCC) has announced a rebrand to American Fiber Cement. Besides the name change, the producer's new branding will consist of a new logo and brand position, and a website redesign. Additionally, the company's range of former Cembrit brand fibre cement products will be rebranded to include the AFC name.

General manager Donna Anglada said "We are excited to reveal our new branding, but we also want to ensure that our distributors, reps and customers understand that, while the names are changing, we will continue to sell Patina, Patina Inline, Patina Rough, Deco, Solid, Cover and Transparent."

Taiwan Cement said this week that it is aiming for cement to account for less than half of its sales by 2025. At the annual shareholders’ meeting chair Nelson Chang defended the cement sector as a core business but said that the company was expanding more into the green energy sector through its energy storage and vehicle charging lines. Chang directly linked the strategy to growing carbon taxes around the world, such as the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme, where the carbon price has been occasionally close to pushing past Euro100/t since early 2022. Taiwan Cement formed a joint venture with Türkiye-based Oyak Group in 2018 that runs Cimpor in Portugal.

Table 1: Cement business share by revenue of selected cement producers. Source: Corporate annual reports.

Taiwan Cement’s plan to decrease its reliance on cement is becoming a familiar one. Holcim notably revealed in 2021 that it was growing its light building materials division. Its cement division represented 60% of sales in 2020 with concrete and aggregates making up most of the rest to 92% and the remaining 8% on other products including light building materials. This started to change with the acquisition of roofing and building envelope producer Firestone Building Products in 2021. Other similar acquisitions have followed. Holcim’s current target is to grow the Solutions & Products division to around 30% by 2025, with cement reduced to somewhere between a third and half of sales. Earlier this year Japan-based Taiheiyo Cement said it was doing a similar thing as part of its medium-term strategy to 2035. In its case cement represented 70% of its sales in 2022 but it is now aiming to reduce this to 65% by 2025 and 50% by 2035.

A common pattern for the business composition of European cement companies is a mixture of heavy building materials made up of cement, concrete and aggregate. However, not every cement company follows the same route. Some cement companies are simply parts of larger conglomerates. UltraTech Cement, for example, is mostly just a cement company. However, it is also part of Aditya Birla Group, which runs a wide range of industries including chemicals, textiles, financial services, telecoms, mining and more. Depending on how one looks at it, UltraTech Cement’s cement business ratio is large or Aditya Birla Group’s ratio is small. Siam Cement Group (SCG) in Thailand is another example of a cement producer operated by a conglomerate with other major businesses.

A different approach that some cement producers take is to mix cement production with complimentary businesses outside of heavy building materials. A good example of this is Votorantim Cement in Brazil, which manufactures cement and steel. Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional (CSN) is another Brazil-based cement producer that is also well known for steel production. Adani Group in India, meanwhile, was well known for logistics, power generation and airports before it purchased Ambuja Cements and ACC from Holcim in 2022.

The driver for cement companies looking to reduce cement as a proportion of their businesses has varied between the three examples presented above. Holcim’s approach has been in response to growing European carbon costs but it also fits with a general desire to broaden its business as the company has sought to reshape itself following the merger between Lafarge and Holcim. Taiheiyo Cement’s plans also have a sustainability angle but the Japanese market has been in slow decline since the 1990s and this has been made worse by the spike in energy prices since 2022. Investing in new businesses makes sense for either of these reasons. Lastly, Taiwan Cement says it is taking action in response to carbon prices around the world. However, its proximity to many other large-scale producers in the Far East may also be a factor. Whether more companies follow suit and also start to reduce the ratio of their cement businesses remains to be seen. Yet, mounting carbon taxes and global production overcapacity look set to make more of the larger cement producers consider their options in certain places.

Bangladesh: Shun Shing Group has made new appointments to the roles of chair, vice chair, deputy managing director and managing director of business development operations. The Dhaka Tribune newspaper has reported that the group has promoted Ikram Ahmed Khan, formerly managing director, to the role of chair. Raihan Ahmed will serve as vice chair and Shakib Pasha as deputy managing director, while Tahmina Ahmed will serve as managing director of business development operations. The China-headquartered group previously appointed Tahmina Ahmed as additional managing director for Bangladesh in June 2021. She has served on the board of directors since 2007.

China: The board of directors of West China Cement has approved the appointment of Fan Zhan as a non-executive director. Fan is a senior accountant and deputy head of finance at Anhui Conch Cement. He was previously head of finance at Anhui Tongling Conch Cement. He holds a graduate degree from Tongling University.

Fan Zhan replaces Wang Jingqian on West China Cement’s board of directors, following the latter’s resignation.

UK: Holcim subsidiary Aggregate Industries has announced the appointment of Thierry Davila as manager of Cauldon cement plant in Staffordshire. Davila has 27 years’ experience in the cement industry, including working on projects affecting Cauldon cement plant since November 2021. Aggregate Industries says that he brings a wealth of global experience and a proven track record in technical capability. In his new role, Davila will focus on strategic operations, including ensuring that the plant can navigate market challenges while providing innovative solutions to customers.

Aggregate Industries CEO Dragan Maksimovic said “Thierry brings an enormous amount of global experience of the cement industry to Cauldon. Having been part of the Holcim Group for almost 20 years, I am confident in Thierry’s ability to drive the business forward and meet the demands of an ever-changing market. I would like to congratulate Thierry on his new appointment, and I look forward to working with him in the coming months.”

US: Heidelberg Materials North America has commenced cold testing of a new 420t/hr pipe conveyor at its Mitchell cement plant in Indiana. Italy-based Bedeschi supplied the 700m-long conveyor. The supplier said that, when fully operational, the new equipment will help the Mitchell cement plant to be one of the most efficient and largest cement plants in the US.

China: Anhui Conch and six partners have agreed to establish a partnership fund. The cement producer informed the Hong Kong Exchange that it will directly contribute US$211m into the fund. Securities firm Haitong Capital will provide fund management services as executive partner.