Global Cement News

Pakistan: According to brokerage firm AKD Securities, Pakistan's cement industry recorded a 2% year-on-year growth in dispatches, reaching 45.3Mt in the financial year 2024, largely due to increased exports. Domestic sales, however, fell to a seven-year low of 33.2Mt, a 5% decline from 2023. This drop is attributed to a slowdown in construction activities, influenced by high construction costs, rising inflation, and peak interest rates.

Exports grew significantly by 56% year-on-year, amounting to 7.11Mt. This was mainly due to the decreased international coal prices, which improves the viability of exports. Despite the overall increase, June 2024 saw a decline in both local sales and exports. Local sales fell by 12% due to fewer working days during the Eid holidays, and exports declined by 18%, mainly due to reduced clinker sales from the south regions.

France: The Eqiom Lumbres cement plant, part of CRH, has commissioned ThyssenKrupp Polysius to construct a fine grinding plant. The new plant will include the Polysius booster mill and the Sepol ultra-fine classifier, along with necessary auxiliary equipment. ThyssenKrupp Polysius is set to deliver the equipment by late summer 2025, aiming for commissioning in the fourth quarter of 2025. It will also provide on-site service and technical support for performance optimisation.

Project Manager Layal Haddad said "We are proud to be contributing to decarbonisation with the ultra-fine grinding plant and reducing the CO₂ footprint of cement. This is the first ultra-fine grinding plant based on a Polysius booster mill to be sold worldwide. We look forward to a successful project together with the Eqiom/CRH team."

Canada: Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Steven Guilbeault, announced the reinvestment of up to US$1.6m from industrial pollution pricing proceeds into a new emissions reduction project at St Marys Cement in St Marys, Ontario. This initiative will involve the installation of a new kiln utilising low-carbon fuels, including discarded plastics, to reduce the use of carbon-intensive fuels used in the manufacturing process by up to 30%. The project aims for a reduction of over 39,900t of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, according to Foreign Affairs news.

India: Oriana Power has received an order for a 40MWp solar power plant in Rajasthan from a cement producer. The project is valued at US$18m. Oriana will provide engineering, procurement and construction, alongside the commissioning, operation and maintenance of the plant. The plant is scheduled for commissioning in April 2025, with a subsequent operation and maintenance period of 25 years.

Canada: WEG will supply the substation of Votorantim Cimentos North America’s St Marys Cement plant in Bowmanville, Ontario with its transformers. The order includes four transformers with capacities of 20MVA and 25MVA and voltage levels of 43.8/4.16kV. Sales and engineering teams from Brazil collaborated with VJ Pamensky Canada, the exclusive distributor of WEG in Canada, on the project.