Zimbabwe: Bulawayo City Council has cancelled Labenmon Investments’ lease for the construction of a cement grinding plant at Umvumila Industrial Park after the China-based company failed to finalise the lease signing process, according to The Chronicle newspaper. The lease was awarded in October 2024 but the decision follows controversy around the project. Deputy Mayor Edwin Ndlovu and finance and development committee chairperson councillor Mpumelelo Moyo were previously arrested by the Anti-Corruption Commission in an alleged bribery case.

Director of town planning Wisdom Siziba said “This report sought to cancel the offer of industrial stands 15895 and 15896 Umvumila for Labenmon Investments after council on 2 October 2024 had resolved that stands 15895 and 15896 be leased out to Labenmon Investments for an initial period of five years subject to review. The applicant indicated that they would use the stand for industrial purposes, establishing a cement mixing plant, at a monthly rental of US$450 and US$700 respectively (exclusive of VAT). The applicant had accepted the offer but did not finalise the lease signing process. Several reminders were sent to the applicant to no avail. It was against this backdrop that the department wished to have the offer cancelled and the stand repossessed.”

In October 2024, it was alleged that the two officials had been arrested for demanding a US$20,000 bribe from Labenmon Investments in exchange for approving 5.6 hectares of land for the grinding plant. The case saw the Deputy Mayor acquitted after a full trial. Councillor Moyo was found guilty and sentenced to 18 months' imprisonment. In October 2025, he was granted US$200 bail by the High Court pending appeal.

Brazil: Cimento Apodi said that it has recorded a 20% thermal substitution rate (TSR), avoided 1500t/yr of CO₂ emissions and invested more than US$4.7m in a new 5MW solar park. The producer has targeted a 25% TSR by the end of 2025.

It says it will increase renewable energy use through its solar park and a waste heat recovery system. Together these will supply 25% of its electricity demand by the end of 2025. The implementation of the cement mill optimiser (CMO), an artificial intelligence-based system developed with the Federal University of Ceará and the Titan Group, has increased mill productivity by up to 13% and installed capacity by 10%. The company is also developing gasifiers that can reduce emissions by up to 10% per tonne of cement.

The integrated Quixeré cement plant coprocesses byproducts such as tyres, cashew nut shells, açaí seeds, carnauba stalks and industrial waste from other sectors. All materials undergo sorting and characterisation to meet the parameters of particle size, moisture and calorific value.

Germany: Dyckerhoff has received general building authority approval for the use of CEM VI (S-LL) cement produced at its Lengerich plant. The German Institute for Building Technology granted the approval for the plant in October 2025 for almost all exposure classes. It combines clinker, granulated blast furnace slag and limestone to produce cement with a lower CO₂ footprint, low heat of hydration and low effective alkali content.

Armenia: The Armenian government will exempt Dragsman Cement from customs duties on imports. The producer will invest US$5m to build a new cement plant using imported equipment. It will invest US$3.6m in fixed assets, US$654,000 in dismantling and installation,  US$130,000 in construction and US$523,000 in specialised equipment. According to local press, there will be 40 new jobs available. The customs duty exemption is valued at US$107,000.