Global Cement News

Vietnam: Vietnam sold 89Mt of cement and clinker in 2023, down by 6% year-on-year from 2022 levels. Việt Nam News has reported that exports fell less sharply than domestic sales. The country exported 32.6Mt of cement and clinker, down by 2% year-on-year from 2022.

The Ministry of Construction is reportedly contemplating extending a 2% reduction in the rate of value-added tax (VAT) on cement in order to stimulate sales. Additionally, it has called for a reduction in the export tax on clinker back down to 5%, following a rise to 10% in 2023.

Spain: Cemex España has announced its participation in the HYIELD consortium, which plans to build a waste-to-hydrogen demonstration plant at the producer’s Alcanar cement plant in Catalonia. The demonstration plant will process a total of 2000t of biogenic waste to produce 400t of green hydrogen for use as fuel, fertiliser and for other applications. The trial commands Euro10m in funding from the EU’s research and innovation funding programme Horizon Europe. Parent company Cemex believes that the technology being demonstrated at Alcanar has the potential to process 300Mt/yr of waste across Europe and produce 30Mt/yr of hydrogen.

Cemex’s Europe, Middle East and Africa regional president Sergio Menendez said “As part of its drive towards reaching net zero by 2050, Cemex is committed to partnering with like-minded organisations to explore the very latest innovations in more sustainable technology that can support the cement production process. We are proud to provide one of our cement plants in Spain as the location for the HYIELD trial and excited to see the outcomes from this research and development project.”

Ecuador: Saint-Gobain has entered into an agreement to acquire a majority stake in IMPTEK Chova del Ecuador, a producer of waterproofing construction chemicals. When the deal completes it will be France-based company’s first manufacturing presence in the country. IMPTEK sells its products locally but also exports to several Latin and Central American countries. The completion of the transaction is subject to approval by competition authorities and expected in the first half of 2024. No value for the purchase has been disclosed.

Iraq: A 1200m dry gas pipeline feeding the Najaf cement plant has been commissioned. The project was the first external assignment carried out by the Oil Pipelines Company, according to the National Iraqi News Agency. The plant is operated by the Southern Cement Company.

Japan: Sumitomo Osaka Cement, Sumitomo Corporation, JFE Steel, Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha and Woodside Energy have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to jointly conduct a business feasibility study looking at setting up a CO₂ hub in the Setouchi and Shikoku regions. It will examine how CO₂ can be collected from different industries, transported to a hub port and then shipped to Australia for sequestration. A signing of the MOU was held at the ASEAN-Japan Economic Co-Creation Forum in the presence of Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Ken Saito.

Sumitomo Osaka Cement operates two integrated plants in the Setouchi and Shikoku regions at Ako and Kochi respectively.