Global Cement News

US: Cemex USA has upgraded two Florida cement terminals, the Pensacola and Palm Beach terminals, at a cost of US$8m. The upgraded terminals will serve to increase Cemex USA’s cement supply to the region through marine shipments from its global operations. The Palm Beach terminal is also involved in the distribution of assorted cementitious materials including granulated blast furnace slag (GBFS) and fly ash for cement production.

USA executive vice president Matthew Wild said “Florida is growing rapidly, and Cemex’s strong network makes our company well-positioned to implement supply chain and operational enhancements to meet the high demand for building materials in Florida and beyond.” He added “On the cement side, increased demand has outpaced supply at times, and we expect our supply chain enhancements to help alleviate that issue.”

Mexico: Cemex has announced the release of the collateral on its debt under its main bank agreement and senior secured notes. The release follows Cemex’s reporting of two consecutive quarters with a consolidated leverage ratio of 3.75x or less.

CFO Maher A-Haffar said “We are very pleased with this momentous milestone, which is a culmination of the substantial strengthening of our capital structure and paves the way towards an investment grade rating. This will simplify our debt structure and reduce the cost of managing our debt stack.”

Chile: Unacem has completed its acquisition of Spain-based Cementos La Unión’s Chilean cement business. The value of the asset, including assumed debts, was US$23m. The business consists of the 0.3t/yr San Antonio grinding plant and two ready-mix concrete plants with a total capacity of 336,000m² /yr.

Germany: Scientists at the University of Kassel in Hessen have launched a study into the use of ash from waste incinerators in precast concrete production. The Hessische Allgemeine newspaper has reported that a waste-to-energy plant in Kassel will provide the ash for concrete production in partnership with local companies Kimm Baustoffe and Gebäudeke Baustoff-Recycling. The study aims to produce pre-cast concrete elements containing at least 30% ash, beginning with paving slabs and noise barriers.

Project leader David Laner said that ash has the potential to help lower concrete’s carbon footprint. He said “So far, it has been put to lesser-value uses; we make a product out of it - upcycling instead of downcycling.”

Canada: Habitats for Humanity has again partnered with Lafarge Canada for its annual affordable housing fundraiser in Kingston, Ontario. This year, the partners will attempt to raise US$21,700 over 27 days to support the construction of sustainable housing in Eastern Canada. Lafarge Canada has pledged 80m3 of its ECOPact reduced-CO₂ concrete to the project.

Eastern Canada regional head of environment and sustainability Rob Cumming said "Our sustainability goals overlap safe housing with reduced climate impact.” He added "We are excited about this first milestone and are looking forward to the future supply of our ECOPlanet solutions.”