Global Cement News

Pakistan: Maple Leaf Cement’s profits have fallen due to mounting costs of goods. Its profit after taxation fell by 4% year-on-year to US$37m in the year to 30 June 2018 from US$39m in the same period in 2017. Despite this its sales rose by 7.5% to US$208m from US$194m. The cement producer added that it had approved a US$8.1m loan to its holding company Kohinoor Textile Mills to meet ‘working capital requirements.’

Vietnam: Tan Thang Cement has ordered additional integrated digital automation and electrical equipment from Switzerland’s ABB for a new 2Mt/yr plant it is building in Nghe An province. The order is a follow- up order to the initial automation and electrical systems delivery from ABB for this site, which is currently under construction.

The follow-up order includes a 110kV AIS Substation (Air Insulated Substation), with a SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) system based on ABB Ability System 800xA for Power Control, as well as telecommunications, and High Voltage primary and secondary equipment to support the electrical infrastructure. ABB will also deliver power transformers, distribution transformers, an Intelligent Motor Control Centre, Auxiliary Control Centre, Emergency Diesel Generator, DC power supply, various field devices and related commissioning services.

ABB’s initial delivery included ABB Ability System 800xA DCS (Distributed Control System) to integrate control, electrical and communication systems for optimal visibility into all processes for stable production and efficient use of raw materials and energy. It also included ABB Ability Knowledge Manager and Expert Optimizer software, as well as basic communication and electrical system infrastructure and equipment.

The project is scheduled to be commissioned in late 2019.

US/China: The Office of the US Trade Representative has started implementing a 10% tariff on mineral and other products from China, including cement, following a consultation period. Mineral products affected by the proposed tariffs of interest to the cement industry include limestone flux, quicklime, slaked lime, gypsum, anhydrite, clinkers of Portland, aluminous, slag, supersulphate and similar hydraulic cements, white Portland cement, Portland cement, aluminous cement, slag cement, refractory cements, additives for cement, cement based building materials and more.

The latest tariff list follows an earlier decision by the US government to tax imports from China worth US$34bn that came into force in early July 2018.

Germany: Environmental data from the German Cement Works Association (VDZ) show that average nitrogen dioxide emissions (NO₂) from cement production dropped below 300mg/Nm³ in 2017. The value has more than halved since 2000. Other data from the ‘Environmental Data of the German Cement Industry 2017’ report shows that fossil fuels usage by the cement industry fell to 35% in 2017 compared to 45.6% in 2008.

"By consistently promoting the development of clinker-efficient cements, German cement manufacturers are noticeably reducing the carbon footprint as compared to traditional Portland cements," said VDZ President Christian Knell.

Knell also warned that the costs of carbon capture technologies should not be allowed to jeopardise the competitiveness of domestic cement manufacturers and give rise to ‘undesirable’ carbon leakage effects. The industry is currently researching methods to further reduce CO₂ emissions such as carbon capture, storage and utilisation techniques, but it is dependent on external financing.

18 German cement manufacturers with a total of 46 cement plants are members of the VDZ. The local industry employs around 8000 people.

India: Mahendra Singhi, the group chief executive officer (CEO) of Dalmia Cement, says that the company aims to be carbon negative by 2040. Singhi made the announcement at the Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco, US, according to the Indo-Asian News Service. The cement producer is planning to increase its low-carbon product portfolio and use more ‘green’ fuels and raw materials in all of its 14 plants in India.

Dalmia Cement is the first Indian cement company to join RE 100 and it is committed to a target of 100% renewable electricity use. Singhi said that the major challenge is to convert the climate risks into business opportunities while sustaining business growth for the benefit of present as well as future stakeholders. Singhi was previously the Indian co-chair of the Cement Sustainability Initiative (CSI).

Singhi said that Dalmia Group has been able to reduce carbon dioxide emissions to 526kg/t of cement on a group average and to 342kg/t in its eastern operations. According to the CDP (formerly Carbon Disclosure Project) cement sector report in April 2018, Dalmia Bharat achieved the first rank in CDP's low carbon transition league.