Global Cement News

Germany: CI4C has installed the final modular component of its carbon purification unit (CPU) at the Schwenk Zement plant in Mergelstetten. The unit is 31m long with a cross-section of 5 x 5m, installed using a tandem lift.

The unit completes major construction work at the CO₂ capture pilot project. The CPU will clean and liquefy CO₂-rich exhaust gas from the oxyfuel kiln and processes it to food-grade quality, enabling its reuse in purified form. Final mechanical and electrical works are underway ahead of commissioning in late summer 2025.

European cement producers Buzzi, Dyckerhoff, Heidelberg Materials, Schwenk Zement and Vicat established CI4C in 2019 to implement the catch4climate initiative. The 450t/day clinker line and CPU have been purpose-built at the plant, which has received investment of over €120m, and will be used solely for research and development.

India: JK Cement reported a strong performance for the first quarter of the 2026 financial year, with consolidated net profit up by 76% year-on-year to US$37.6m, from US$21.4m in the same quarter in 2025. Sales rose by 19% to US$388.4m, from US$325.3m. Operating profit also grew, with earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) up by 41% to US$79.7m, from US$56.3m.

The producer attributed the rise to volume growth in the grey cement segment and higher realisations in Central India and Bihar. It also recorded an 8% growth in white cement sales.

JK Cement said construction of its 4Mt/yr grey clinker unit at Panna is 76% complete. It is also developing 3Mt/yr of cement capacity across Panna, Hamirpur and Prayagraj—1Mt/yr at each site—with construction in advanced stages. A 3Mt/yr split grinding unit in Bihar is due for commissioning by December 2025. As of June 2025, the company spent US$165.6m on clinker and cement projects and US$32.9m on the Bihar unit.

It also completed the acquisition of a 60% stake in a cement and clinker unit in Jammu & Kashmir for US$17.4m in June 2025. The acquisition added 0.42Mt/yr of cement and 0.26Mt/yr of clinker capacity.

Russia: Sibcem’s five cement plants produced 2.2Mt of cement in the first half of 2025, down by 9% year-on-year.

Topkinsky Plant’s output dropped by 12% to 0.89Mt, Iskitimcement’s fell by 15% to 0.53Mt, Krasnoyarsk Cement’s fell by 5% to 0.3Mt and TimlyuiCement’s fell by 7% to 0.18Mt. Angarskcement grew production by 3% to 0.33Mt.

First vice president of Sibcem Gennady Rasskazov said “According to our calculations, in January – June of 2025, the volume of cement consumption in Siberia (within its previous borders – taking into account Buryatia and Transbaikalia) amounted to 2.8Mt, which is 10% lower than the level of the first six months of 2024. At the same time, the situation in different regions is different. For example, in Buryatia, demand increased by 8% in the first half of the year, while in Khakassia it decreased by 28%. A significant decline was also recorded in one of the most 'capacious' markets of the Siberian Federal District: cement consumption in the Novosibirsk Region decreased by 15%.”

He added “In the future, negative trends will intensify: so far, we do not see any prerequisites that allow us to talk about an imminent recovery in demand.”

Japan: Cement producers used 21.9Mt of post-consumer materials and by-products in the 2024 financial year, down by 3% year-on-year, marking the third consecutive annual decline, according to the Japan Cement Association.

Coal ash and blast furnace slag, which together make up over 50% of the total, both declined, although post-consumer plastics increased for a fourth consecutive year.

Cement production, including clinker for export, also fell by 3% to 45.7Mt. The amount of byproducts used per tonne of cement dropped from 480kg in 2023 to 478kg, but remained above 400kg for the 21st year in a row.

Rwanda: The government signed a 15-year industrial quarry licence agreement with cement producer Cimerwa on 17 July 2025, paving the way for a US$190m investment in a clinker plant in Musanze District, according to The New Times newspaper. The agreement aims to reduce cement imports, create jobs and support Rwanda’s infrastructure development through sustainable quarrying practices, according to a statement by the Rwanda Development Board.

Cement imports rose by 42% year-on-year to US$94m in 2024 from US$64m previously, according to data from the Ministry of Trade and Industry. On 16 July 2025, the Cabinet approved new mineral, quarry and exploration licences to boost mining in the country.