Global Cement News

UK: Aggregate Industries has acquired Maxi Readymix Concrete, an independent readymix concrete (RMX) business based in Leicestershire and the East Midlands. The company operates a Betomix 2.66m³ twin shaft wet batch plant capable of producing 110m³/hr of compacted concrete with a silo capacity of 400t and aggregate capacity of 650t. It was supplied by Germany’s Liebherr and commissioned in 2014.

UK: Hanson has opened a new ready-mixed concrete (RMX) plant in Rochester, Kent, to supply growing demand for construction projects in the South East. The new unit replaces the subsidiary of HeidelbergCement’s former concrete plant in the town. The group says it provides increased capacity, improved productivity, lower power consumption and reduced ongoing maintenance costs.

Romania/Switzerland: Romania’s anti-trust authority has completed its review of LafargeHolcim’s takeover of the precast concrete manufacturer Someco for an undisclosed sum. SeeNews has reported that the body found that “no significant obstacles to effective competition” were raised by the deal.

Somaco’s five precast concrete and one aerated concrete block production plants, which employ 750 people, made sales of Euro56m in 2018.

Nigeria: Lafarge Africa CEO Michael Puchercos re-introduced the company’s fast-setting and early-strengthening Supaset cement at a product launch in Lagos on 2 October 2019. The Guardian Nigeria has reported that the new and improved Supaset has been specially refined to suit climate conditions across the country. In line with the ‘Building for Growth’ pillar of its Strategy 2022, the cement is packaged in horizontal bags for ease of block making.

US: A court in South Carolina has ruled against a dismissal motion submitted by Lafarge North America, Argos USA and six other manufacturers of ready-mix concrete which stand accused of fixing prices, rigging project bids and allocating territories and customers amongst themselves. Class Action Reporter has stated that the defendants asserted that the complainants, who claim to have suffered injury by the alleged conspiracy, have failed to provide actionable facts pertaining to the role of each accused party, the duration of the purported anti-competitive behaviour and its geographic scope including the court’s jurisdiction. Lafarge further contested that the Statute of Limitations precludes its prosecution, because it ceased concrete trading in the region in 2011. The court concluded that the claim contained sufficient fact for further examination to be reasonably expected to reveal evidence of an illegal agreement. It will hear the case against all defendants.