India: JK Cement has started grey cement production at its 0.7Mt/yr-capacity Balasinor grinding plant in Gujarat. Accord Fintech News has reported that the plant, which dispatched its first batch of cement on 10 October 2020, brings JK Cement’s total grey cement production capacity to 4.2Mt/yr.

Kazakhstan: Steppe Cement’s sales in the first nine months of 2020 were US$26.0m, up by 5% year-on-year from US$24.7m over the corresponding period of 2019. Dow Jones Institutional News has reported that cement sales volumes fell by 4% to 556,000t from 535,000t. Steppe Cement forecast full-year cement market growth of 2% to 9.0Mt in 2020 from 8.9Mt in 2019.

Cuba/US: A court in Florida has accepted a request for damages worth US$270m from LafargeHolcim to over 20 parties from Cuba whose land was nationalised and subsequently had a cement plant built on it. The claim alleges that Switzerland-based Holderbank has held a stake in the partly-state owned Carlos Marx cement plant near Cienfuegos since 2001 via a deliberately “complex network of letterbox companies and transactions” in the Netherlands and Spain, according to the Tages Anzeiger newspaper. Holderbank later became Holcim and then LafargeHolcim.

The building materials producer’s alleged involvement may constitute a violation of the US embargo on trade with Cuba for companies active in the US. The claim has been aided by a clause in the US’s Cuban blockade law, activated by President Donald Trump, enabling Cubans to claim damages in US courts for expropriated property from private companies which profited from them.

Austria: RHI Magnesita has launched Ankral Low Carbon, a 14% reduced carbon dioxide (CO₂) refractory brick. Instead of raw magnesite, Ankral Low Carbon bricks contain used refractory bricks as a dead burned magnesia (DBM) source.

The company says, “Adaption of production cycles is one of four ways in which RHI Magnesita is contributing to environmental sustainability, alongside shortening transportation routes, increasing of energy efficiency and reducing the carbon footprint of raw material.”

Malaysia: Belgium-based Etex has merged its cement boards subsidiary Kalsi Malaysia with fireproofing specialist Promat Malaysia under the new brand Etex Malaysia. The company says that the name change “reflects Etex's broader commitment to inspire ways of living through innovation.” PR Newswire Asia has reported that by combining its Malaysian subsidiaries under the Etex Malaysia brand the group aims to strengthen its offerings to local and export Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) markets.

Iraq: China-based China Machinery Engineering has secured a contract for the establishment of an integrated cement plant in Erbil, Kurdistan. Dow Jones Newswire Chinese News has reported that the plant is scheduled for completion in April 2023, at a total investment cost of US$210m.

US: LafargeHolcim subsidiary Holcim US has opened a 10MW solar power plant at its Hagerstown, Maryland cement plant in partnership with Greenbacker Renewable Energy Company. The producer says that the power plant will supply 25% of the cement plant’s energy needs, reducing its carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions by 12,400t/yr.

LafargeHolcim cement US operations chief executive officer (CEO) Jamie Gentoso said, “As solar technologies continue to improve, this abundant energy source stands out as both a sustainable and economical solution to follow through on our commitment to minimise emissions and reduce our carbon footprint. We already have access to large areas of land with a high concentration of sunlight, so utilising solar energy is an easy decision. As we strive toward becoming a net-zero company, clean energy is a key part of our strategy. We hope to install enough renewable energy to power all of our plants and give back to the surrounding communities by 2026; this new solar array is just the beginning for us.”

Portugal: Germany-based ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions has announced its appointment by Secil for modernisation of its 2.0Mt/yr Outão integrated cement plant. The supplier says that it will, “modify the existing rotary kiln and preheater tower, install a new AS-MSC calciner equipped with a Prepol SC-S calcining system to increase fuel flexibility and maximise the use of a wide range of alternative fuels (AF) with a minimum substitution rate of 85%.”

Additionally, a new Polytrack 7T/5-3R grate cooler, including a new cooler dedusting system, will replace the existing planetary cooler. The upgrade aims to “bring the plant to the highest energy efficiency, low nitrous oxides (NO_x) and the lowest carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions among European cement producers” and is partly funded by the Portuguese government.

ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions chief executive officer (CEO) Samir Abi Ramia said, “This project marks a milestone for our Grey2Green initiative and is proof of the rising demand for green technologies in the cement industry. Secil is aware of the stakes for tomorrow and beyond and places great value on sustainability. With our energy-saving and emissions-reducing technologies, we are proud to play our part in the transition towards carbon-neutral cement production.” He added, “Secil can be confident that, with this investment, its Outão plant will rank among the top 10% of efficient cement plants in Europe.”

US: The North Dakota Department of Transportation (NDDOT) has signed a contract with drone supplier Botlink InSite to serve its drone surveying and mapping needs for management of aggregates used in building transport infrastructure.

Chief executive officer (CEO) Terri Zimmerman said, “We’re excited to add the NDDOT to our ever-growing list of customers. Our users see real cost savings by quickly getting accurate data, including reducing overproduction and underproduction.” She added that the drones can also serve cement companies in managing their raw materials stores.

US: The Wildlife Habitat Council has named Cemex USA the winner of the Corporate Conservation Leadership Award 2020. The award signifies “an exemplary corporate commitment to biodiversity and conservation education, and meaningful alignments with global conservation objectives.”

Director of Sustainability Vicente Saiso said, “We are privileged to receive the Corporate Conservation Leadership Award from the Wildlife Habitat Council. This recognition is testimony to our successful efforts and fosters our commitment to continue embedding sustainability in every aspect of our operations. To date, we have achieved certification for 30 programmes and community environmental initiatives in our operations around the world, with the highest standards of environmental conservation and biodiversity restoration.”

Projects include collaborations in the US and further afield with the California State Wildlife Action Plan, the Friends of Verde River Cooperative Invasive Plant Management Plan, BirdLife International, the El Carmen Nature Reserve Action Programme and a black bear research initiative, as well as the Mexican Strategy for Chihuahuan Grasslands Conservation, the Dominican Republic National Annual Plan and Panama's Alliance for a Million Hectares.