Global Cement News

US: Cemex USA has unveiled a new train at its Victorville cement plant in California. The train was built by Knoxville Locomotive Works it comes with an MTU-4000 Series engine. It will be used to transport clinker at the plant. The engine has been selected to meet US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and California Air Resources Board Tier 4 Emissions requirements. A portion of the cost of the new train was covered by a federal grant secured with the assistance of the Mojave Desert Air Quality Management District.

US: Lehigh Cement’s Mitchell plant in Indiana has won a 2019 Governor’s Workplace Safety Award for innovations as a medium-sized company. The awards are issued by the Indiana Department of Labor.

The subsidiary of Germany’s HeidelbergCement recorded no lost-time accidents in 2018 and the plant has not had a lost-time accident since September 2015, according to the Herald Times newspaper. The company uses a Safety Action Plan with specific targets that focus on areas of significant risk, including critical risk management and zero fatalities. It also runs weekly safety conversations between employees to raise health and safety issues with management.

China: Anhui Conch’s Jining Conch subsidiary has signed a contract worth US$23m with Conch Design Institute for selective catalytic reduction (SCR) units. Conch Design Institute will supply SCR denitration technology to Jining Conch including engineering design, equipment supply, construction and installation, engineering supervision and project management. The project is expected to be completed by the end of June 2019.

US: Mitsubishi Cement’s Lucerne Valley plant in California has received a US$0.32m grant for emission-reducing equipment from the Mojave Desert Air Quality Management District. The grant has been used to buy a new 2018 Viking Trackmobli diesel mobile railcar mover at the site to replace two older pieces of equipment. The railcar mover was purchased with grant funds through AB 2766, which authorises air districts to impose a US$4 vehicle registration fee to meet the requirements of the California Clean Air Act.

Saudi Arabia: City Cement’s net profit after Zakat and tax grew by 19% year-on-year to US$29.6m in 2018 from US$24.9m in 2017. It attributed the result to operational efficiency and a settlement it reached in late 2018 with China’s Sinoma International about the construction of a second production line. The cement producer’s sales fell by 36% to US$92m from US$143m due to low demand for cement and local competition.