Spain: Votorantim España plans to invest Euro15m in an upgrade to improve the efficiency of its subsidiary Cementos Cosmos' Toral de los Vados cement plant in Léon. The project will reduce the plant's power consumption by 7%, while increasing its clinker production by 11% to 3100t/day. Cementos Cosmos expects to commission the newly upgraded plant before the end of 2023. ALIMKC News has reported that the local authority has altered the plant's environmental authorisation accordingly.

Switzerland: Cemsuisse, the Swiss cement association, recorded full-year national cement deliveries of 4.15Mt/yr throughout 2022. The figure represents a 0.7% year-on-year decline from 4.18Mt/yr throughout 2021. During 2022, ready-mix concrete batching plants received 73% of deliveries, while building sites received 20%. 37% of cement travelled to its destination by rail.

Cemsuisse said that energy uncertainty and rising inflation impacted on deliveries during the fourth quarter of the year.

Canada: Lafarge Canada has signed an agreement with power provider TransAlta to recover and process fly ash from the site of the latter's decommissioned Edmonton coal-fired power plant. The project will use Ash-TEK's Ponded Ash Beneficiation System (PABS) fly ash beneficiation technology. The processed ash will then be able to replace up to 25% of cement in low-CO₂ concrete production.

TransAlta previously secured with Lafarge Canada for the supply of renewable power to its Exshaw, Alberta, cement plant in February 2022.

Italy: General Sistem has inaugurated its new 300,000t/yr Venice cement terminal. The facility is equipped with four cement silos with a total capacity of 20,000t, and will be able to receive 150m-long ships. CITIT News has reported that the Bahamas-registered Nordanvik was the first cement transport ship to dock at the terminal, on 10 January 2023. The Venice terminal will receive up to 50 cement ships annually.

Spain: Cyprus-registered Grit Cement, a 3910t-capacity cement carrier, struck a berthed chemicals tanker in harbour in the autonomous city of Ceuta on 9 January 2023, sustaining damage. FleetMon News has reported that the vessel was coming into port from Carboneras, Alméria. It has since disembarked on its return journey to Carboneras.

Malaysia: The Sarawak Economic Development Corporation (SEDC) and Bintulu Development Authority (BDA) are planning to set up a joint-venture tasked with imported cement into Sarawak due to shortages and high prices. The company intends to import 0.5 – 1Mt/yr of cement from Siam Cement Group (SCG) in Thailand, according to the Star newspaper. Representatives of the SEDC and BDA recently visited SCG in Bangkok.

Cement prices in Sarawk are reportedly 15% higher than in mainland Malaysia and 4% higher than neighbouring Sabah. Supply and pricing issues have adversely affected infrastructure projects in the state. Maintenance at CMS Cement’s integrated Mambong plant south of Kuching and delays in delivering raw materials to its grinding plant at Kuching grinding plant caused further disruptions to cement supplies in late 2022.

US: Argos USA has ordered a 490 M-type ship unloader from Swden-based Bruks Siwertell for cement and fly-ash handling at the Port of Houston in Texas. The unloader will have a continuous rated cement handling capacity of 800t/hr and is designed to accommodate vessels up to 65,000 dwt. It will be assembled on site and is planned for delivery in February 2024. Bruks Siwertell will also supply the complete screw conveyor system for transporting dry bulk material from the unloader to a storage dome, along with support structures and walkways.

Belgium: Heidelberg Materials has announced an upcoming project called Anthemis at its subsidiary CBR's Antoing cement plant in Hainaut. The project will implement Heidelberg Material's OxyCal model, which combines Oxyfuel and amine-based carbon capture technology. When operational, the system will capture 800,000t/yr of CO₂, reducing the Antoing cement plant's CO₂ footprint by 97%.

Heidelberg Materials chair Dominik von Achten said “We are excited to add yet another pioneering technology to our CCUS project portfolio, and to build on what we have already achieved in terms of research and innovation. From the Antoing plant alone, we will be able to offer more than 15Mt of carbon-free cement to the construction market during the first 10 years of operation." Von Achten concluded "This is a key contribution to Belgium’s transition to net zero greenhouse gas emissions.”

China: BBMG recorded a 52-59% year-on-year drop in its net profit to US$177 - 207m, Reuters has reported. The producer attributed the decline to a drop in cement sales, alongside a rise in the cost of raw materials.

Australia: First Graphene has partnered with Suvo Strategic Minerals to develop graphene-enhanced metakaolin for use in cement and concrete production. Metakaolin is a pozzolanic material derived from kaolinite clay. The partners believe that the technology has commercial potential to improve concrete performance and reduce CO₂ emissions.