Global Cement News

Norway: HeidelbergCement has joined a list of leaders from various industries in endorsing Norway’s state-owned energy group Equinor’s carbon dioxide (CO2) capture and storage (CCS) plans. Bernd Scheifele, chairman of the managing board of HeidelbergCement, was among representatives of seven companies who signed memoranda of understanding with Equinor.

HeidelbergCement’s Norwegian subsidiary Norcem has been involved in CCS research at its 1.2Mt/yr integrated cement plant in Brevik since 2011. In early 2018, the government shortlisted the plant for its multiple-industry ‘Northern Lights’ CCS project. Beginning in 2023, Equinor will remove 0.4Mt/yr of CO2, half of the plant’s total CO2 output, from Brevik for storage in empty oil and gas fields beneath the North Sea.

In a statement, HeidelbergCement expressed its intention towork together with Equinor to optimise CO2 transportation and develop Europe-wide disposal solutions

Turkey: Fuchs Petrolub and Opet Petrolcülüks’ joint venture Opet Fuchs has completed construction of its 60,000t/yr plant for the production of assorted oil products, including lubricants for the cement industry. The facility was the result of Euro24m in investment.

Thailand: Germany’s Schmersal has founded Schmersal Thailand to serve the machine safety and systems solutions needs of Thailand’s growing industries, including its 42.4Mt/yr cement industry. It will further support Schmersal’s sale partners throughout the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region.

Philippines: Cemex’s subsidiary APO has stopped operations at its Barangay Tina-An cement plant in Naga during morning and afternoon/evening rush-hour to ease the city’s traffic congestion problem. The Philippine Star has reported that lorries dispatching cement from the 4.0Mt/yr integrated plant were a cause of traffic build-up on the Pan-Philippine Highway. Ignacio Mijares, President of Cemex Holdings Philippines, agreed to the restriction following a meeting with Gwendolen Garcia, Governor of Cebu Province. Representatives of Cemex and regional government will meet next week to discuss the working of the solution.

The disruption to production follows the introduction of tariffs of US$4.81/t on imported cement.

Kenya: East Africa Portland Cement Company (EAPCC) has declared an intention to sell two parcels of idle land in Machakos County totalling an area of 2000 acres. Business Daily reports that the 40-day leniency period in which for the company to clear its debts expires on 11 September 2019. Shareholders will vote at an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) on 27 September 2019 on whether to sell the land. To sell the land, EAPCC must first evict 14,300 resident squatters.