Spain: Cementos Molins has dismantled kilns 3, 4 and 5 of the Sant Vicenç dels Horts cement plant in Catalonia. The company says that it will use 48,000t of waste material from the demolition process in cement production in kiln 6 at the plant. The material consists of 35,000t of concrete, 10,000t of scrap metal, 1450t of refractory material and 1500t of other waste.

The total investment cost of the dismantling work was Euro2m. The company said that the demolition of silos presented the most complex challenges of the 24-month process.

The plant mothballed lines 3, 4 and 5 upon the opening of line 6 in 2010.

Argentina: Data from the Asociación de Fabricantes de Cemento Portland (AFCP) shows that cement shipments fell by 11.1% year-on-year to 9.87Mt in 2020 from 11.1Mt in 2019. They fell significantly in the first half of the year but subsequently recovered. Overall shipments - including local sales, imports and exports – last rose in 2017. Despite this, exports rose by 31% to 0.13Mt in 2020 from 0.10Mt in 2019.

Switzerland: CemSuisse, the Swiss cement association, says that cement deliveries fell by 1.5% year-on-year to 4.15Mt in 2020. Deliveries remained stable in the first quarter before falling by 3.3% year-on-year in the second quarter at the same time of the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic. They subsequently recovered to a small increase in the third quarter before falling by 3.1% year-on-year in the fourth.

Jamaica: Caribbean Cement says that it produced a record 0.94Mt of cement in 2020 due to market demand. This has been attributed to capital investment, positive government policies in response to the coronavirus pandemic, the company’s own reaction and the ‘expertise’ of its employees. It said it did not experience an overall loss of productive time due to closures related to the public health situation. Heavy rainfall, inconsistent power supplies and disruptions to mining in the third quarter of 2020 prevented the cement producer from surpassing 1Mt for the year.

“The market responded opposite to what might have been expected given the pandemic. Instead of slowing down, construction grew, and we kept in step with our customers by meeting their demand consistently. We will continue to ramp up production as the market grows,” said Yago Castro, General Manager of Caribbean Cement. He added, “The Government of Jamaica assessed the situation well and allowed critical sectors to continue operating once certain protocols were followed. Prioritising health, while keeping economic goals in mind, have mitigated against the negative impact on our sector.”