Russia: Cement consumption in Russia has increased for 13 consecutive months, according to Darya Martynkina, executive director of the Soyuzcement union of cement producers. This figure increased by 8% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2024 compared to the first quarter of 2023, from 10.4Mt of cement to 11.2Mt.

Martynkina said "Development of infrastructure in Russia still does not correspond to long-term economic tasks and society needs. For example, the level of road network coverage in our country and the level of transport mobility are insufficient; high-speed motorways are close to none."

She highlighted extensive projects that will require ‘significant’ amounts of cement, including the North Siberian railway, the upgrade of 75 airports by 2030, improvements to seaports and expansions of the Eastern Range railway and the M-12 highway extending to Vladivostok.

US: Fortera has inaugurated its first ‘green’ cement production facility in North America, located in Redding, California. The 2787m² ReCarb plant operates alongside the existing CalPortland cement plant, capturing CO₂ emissions and mineralising the CO₂ into calcium carbonate for production of the company’s low-carbon ReAct cement. The process reportedly reduces emissions by 70% compared to traditional methods, yielding a tonne of ‘green’ cement for every tonne of limestone input. The facility aims to capture 6600t/yr of CO₂ and to produce 15,000t/yr of ‘green’ cement.

According to Fortera CEO Ryan Gilliam, Fortera currently has 20 upcoming projects with various cement producers, which will cost US$150m each. This includes a plant in the Midwest that will be a 25-fold capacity increase compared to the Redding plant, producing 400,000t/yr of ‘green’ cement.

US: Holcim has completed a major expansion of its cement holding facility in North Fremont, allowing the plant to meet ‘growing’ market demands in the Omaha region. The US$20m project includes additional rail capacity, a new 50,000t cement dome, an extra silo and a blender for product mixing.

According to the company, the facility now employs seven staff members, up from three, and fulfils the Nebraska Department of Transportation's blended cement requirements using natural pozzolan to create a lower-carbon product.

Holcim's head of US Corporate Communications, Lynn Safranek, said "The availability of extra cement storage and the addition of rail capacity means fewer trips to transport cement from Holcim’s plant in Ste. Genevieve, Missouri, and more reliance on train transportation, which is more efficient than other land-based alternatives.”

India: Ambuja Cements will acquire the grinding unit of My Home Group in Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu, for US$49.6m. The unit has a capacity of 1.5Mt/yr. The acquisition is spread across a 24.6-hectare site near Tuticorin Port and comes with a long-term fly ash agreement.

The CEO of Cement Business at Adani Group, Ajay Kapur said "In addition to the infrastructure and geographical advantages, Ambuja Cements will also inherit the existing dealer network and retain current employees, facilitating a smooth transition and enabling the rapid ramp-up of utilisation."

The total cement capacity of Adani Group now stands at 78.9Mt/yr.