Thailand: SCG International has chosen US-based Black & Veatch to help with the acceleration of its electric vehicle uptake across hundred of sites spanning its operations, including cement. The US Trade and Development Agency has given the group a grant towards three logistics fleet electrification pilot projects.

Parent company Siam Cement Group (SCG)’s managing director Abhijit Datta said "I would like to express our sincere gratitude to USTDA as well as Black & Veatch for their support, guidance and efforts that have made this project possible."

UK: Global building materials supplier Cemex UK has launched its Buildings Made Better range of renovation and refurbishment products and services. The company says that the range offers customers easy access to low carbon, energy efficient or water-conserving building solutions. It includes a wide selection of existing and new products including its Vertua low carbon concrete. The producer said that the solutions support the construction phase and the whole lifecycle of the building.

Cemex Materials West Europe quality and product technology director Steve Crompton said “The renovation of existing buildings can lead to significant energy savings for all, as buildings account for over 40% of energy consumed. More than 220m buildings in Europe, representing approximately 85% of the building stock built before 2021, will mostly still be standing in 2050, yet currently only 1% of buildings undergo energy-efficient renovation each year. The energy performance of buildings is a major area for improvement in public policies, for new build and the renovation of the existing stock. From residential housing, to public buildings and urban schemes, across the board, we’re demonstrating to our customers that by improving the built environment, we can significantly improve our natural environment too.”

He added “Concrete has a critical role to play in the transition to a low-carbon economy. We have the aspiration to deliver net zero CO₂ concrete globally by 2050, which will contribute to the development of climate-smart urban projects, sustainable buildings and climate resilient infrastructures. By bringing together a comprehensive range of sustainable products that support the important area of retrofit, we are offering our customers easy access to the right products for the job whilst keeping the environment front of mind.”

Kazakhstan: Korcem, a joint venture of International Cement Korday and Nurzhan Shakirov, plans to invest US$150m in the upcoming 1.5Mt/yr Korday cement plant in Zhambyl region. The company has a mining licence for 11ha of land in Korday district. International Cement Korday, a subsidiary of Singapore-based International Cement Group, holds 88% of shares in the venture. The plant is scheduled for commissioning in mid-2023.

Chair Ma Zhaoyang said “With our accumulated capabilities and experience in the cement industry in Central Asia, as well as Nurzhan Shakirov’s extensive local expertise in Kazakhstan, we are confident that this joint venture will be another success.”

India: Dalmia Cement has begun cement production at the new 2.3Mt/yr Line 2 of it Kapilas cement plant near Cuttack in Odisha. The plant now commands a production capacity of 4.0Mt/yr.

India: Orient Cement has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Adani Power Maharashtra for the establishment of a grinding plant on land belonging to the latter. The power company will secure a licence to sublet its land to Orient Cement and for the producer to use railway sidings at the site. Orient Cement plans to begin work on the project before April 2022.

Taiwan: The Asia Responsible Enterprise Awards (AREA) awarding body has named Taiwan Cement Corporation among winners in the Green Leadership category at its 2021 event. The company won the award for its concrete product traceability system, which enables customers to access production details via QR code. The system achieved 100% traceability in 2020. Taiwan Cement Corporation is committed to carbon neutral cement production by 2050.

Poland/US: Holcim has announced two new acquisitions in the area of raw materials and aggregates. In Poland, it has acquired granulated calcium carbonate producer Polcalc. The company employs 78 people. In the US, the group has acquired Utah-baed Utelite. The company produces lightweight aggregates and employs 40 people.

CEO Jan Jenisch said “We are pleased to welcome the employees of Utelite and Polcalc and look forward to their experience and capabilities. These two bolt-on acquisitions strengthen our presence in two important growth markets while contributing to Holcim’s overall strategy to expand our range of low-carbon products and solutions.”

Morocco: LafargeHolcim Maroc says that it is on schedule to commission its new 1.6Mt/yr Agadir-Souss cement plant in Souss-Massa region before 2022. The Ajourd’hui le Maroc newspaper has reported that the plant will rely on artificial intelligence (AI) in its cement production process. The total cost of the project is US$335m. The producer says that, when operational, the plant will create 1400 jobs.

India: UltraTech has made a commitment to transition to 100% renewable energy use by 2050. The Aditya Birla subsidiary has joined the global RE100 group of companies committed to energy decarbonisation. Asian News International has reported that the producer is already targeting 34% renewable energy use by 2024 from 13% in 2020. It more than doubled its consumption of renewable energy between 2018 and 2020. UltraTech Cement is additionally targeting a CO2 emissions reduction to 462kg/t of cement. It is the first Indian producer to instigate sustainability target-linked financial commitments.

Oman: Raysut Cement has said that it will commission its upcoming 1Mt/yr Duqm plant, the country’s first clinker grinding plant, in late 2021. The cost of the project is US$30m. The company’s global capacity target is 10Mt/yr by 2022 and 22Mt/yr ‘in the near future.’ It operates the 3Mt/yr Salalah cement plant in Oman and holds minority stakes in three East African grinding plants.

Support services and business development chief Yousef Ahmed Alawi Alibrahim said “This has been a challenging year for manufacturing industries in general, but RCC has been able to negotiate the hurdles with effective planning focusing on health and safety.”