Switzerland: Holcim says it wants to reach at least 40% of sustainable financing by 2024. It intends to put climate action, water preservation and safety at the heart of its strategy to do this. The company has linked this commitment with the completion of two new sustainability-linked financing transactions worth above Euro2.8bn. It has also joined the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) Chief Financial Officers (CFO) Taskforce alongside 60 companies representing a combined US$1.7Tn in market capitalisation. The UNGC CFO Taskforce aligns members’ finance strategies with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).

Holcim’s CFO Géraldine Picaud said, “Sustainability is at the core of what we do. That's why we set ourselves some of the most ambitious goals in our industry. Walking the talk, we are putting climate, water and safety at the heart of our financing strategy. To make a bigger impact, I am delighted to be a member of the UNGC CFO Taskforce to move this agenda forward with my peers.”

In August 2021, Holcim refinanced a Euro3bn syndicated credit line linking it to climate and safety in line with the UN SDGs. The cost of the credit facility will depend on the company’s achievement of its annual targets in these areas. In September 2021, Holcim placed a new 10-year US$100m sustainability-linked bond, based on its 2030 CO₂ reduction target. This issue represents its first private placement of a US Dollar medium-term note linked to climate action. The investor will be entitled to a higher coupon should the company not meet its climate objective. These actions follow the company’s Euro850m sustainability-linked bond issued in November 2020.

India: Finland-based Betolar has launched a partnership with sustainable housing company Tara. The arrangement is intended to enhance India’s ‘green’ construction sector by encouraging the use Betolar’s pre-cast concrete products. These use waste inputs to create a low-carbon alternative to Ordinary Portland Cement. Betolar has been working with Tara since around 2019 to bring its commercial products to the local market.

Betolar's Head of Asia said, "There is a tremendous appetite for sustainable construction materials in India which we are tapped into through our work with Tara and its mission to develop alternative and sustainable models for rural development, democratizing construction from the bottom up."

US: Mississippi Lime Company says it will increase its prices for its quicklime, hydrated lime, specialty, and calcium carbonate products by up to 15%, subject to contractual obligations, in January 2022. It has blamed this on “significant cost pressures and unprecedented supply chain challenges” caused by the coronavirus pandemic and the subsequent economic recovery. Energy, labour, freight and material costs have all been reported as rising.

Germany: Cool Planet Technologies and Hereon have signed a memorandum of understanding with Holcim Deutschland to deliver a carbon capture system for a carbon capture and storage (CCS) trial at the producer’s Höver cement plant in Lower Saxony. Cool Planet Technologies will install their system, which is based on Hereon’s PolyActive membrane technology. The system will have a capture capacity of 5600t/yr and operate from early 2022 to early-mid-2023. If successful, two subsequent expansions will increase the system’s capacity to 170,000t/yr, commencing operation in 2024, and 1.3Mt/yr, commencing in 2026.

The suppliers say that their membrane-based capture system is capable of reducing the energy intensity and eliminating the need for other chemical inputs in CCS.

India: Dalmia Cement plans for 100% of its cement to be low carbon by 2031. The company has a US$405m carbon capture and utilisation (CCU) investment plan to help it to realise its goal. It will also undertake carbon offsetting measures.

Business Line News has reported that the company plans to spend US$1.35bn to increase its installed cement capacity by 52% to 50Mt/yr from 33Mt/yr before the 2024 financial year.

Australia: James Hardie recorded consolidated sales of US$1.75bn in the first half of its 2022 financial year, up by 28% year-on-year from US$1.36bn in the first half of the 2021 financial year. Its earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) more than doubled to US$398m from US$197m. Fibre cement board sales increased by 17% in North America to 463Mm² from 395Mm² and more than doubled to 96.5Mm² from 47.3Mm² in Asia Pacific.

During the 2022, 2023 and 2024 financial years, the group plans to complete expansions of its Prattville, Alabama, cement board plant in the US and a European cement board plant, and to establish a new cement board plant in Victoria, Australia. It also aims to purchase land in the US for a future new cement board plant there.

CEO Jack Truong said "Our mission is to be a high-performance global company that delivers organic growth above market with strong returns, consistently. Ten consecutive quarters of growth above market with strong returns has led to an acceleration in operating cash flow, which is allowing us to expand our global manufacturing capacity, accelerate our growth initiatives, return to ordinary dividends, reduce our debt position, and increase the cash contributions to the Asbestos Injuries Compensation Fund (AICF)."

India: UltraTech Cement has committed to the Global Cement and Concrete Association’s 2050 roadmap for net zero concrete. It says that in realising the commitment, it hope to contribute to building the sustainable world of tomorrow. The Roadmap also includes a sectoral commitment to cut CO₂ emissions by a further 25% by 2030.

Colombia: Cemex Colombia has received a US$16.8m fine from the Colombian Directorate of National Taxes and Customs (DIAN) for irregularities in its 2012 income tax payment. The company reportedly made an improper imputation of its balance for the year. Cemex Colombia says that it will take the matter to court. It has until March 2022 to file a suit.

Chile: Cementos Polpaico has submitted an environmental impact study for a US$60m upgrade of its Cerro Blanco cement plant in Tiltil, near Santiago. Business News America has reported that the proposed work consists of the installation of a new precalciner, an expansion to its four limestone quarries and the establishment of a new filtered tailings deposit and 3000t cement silo.

The producer hopes to launch the project in January 2023 in order to commission the upgraded plant before 2026.

Italy: Buzzi Unicem’s consolidated sales rose by 5.6% year-on-year to US$2.54bn in the first nine months of 2021 from US$2.41bn in the first nine months of 2020. It recorded consolidated cement sales of 23.4Mt, up by 7.5% from 21.7Mt in the corresponding period of 2020. Sales growth in Eastern Europe - especially the Czech Republic and Poland - and the US offset a partial slowdown in Italy, particularly in the third quarter of the year.

The group expects global construction activity to generally remain level into the fourth quarter of 2021. It forecast “favourable” volume and price effects in its full-year results for 2021. It nonetheless noted “growing concern” at rising energy, fuels, logistics, raw materials and services costs in various regions. It forecast group recurring earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) not in excess of 2020 levels.