Global Cement News

Tajikistan: The first coal-fired rotary kiln at the Dushanbe cement plant is about to start operation, according to the Tajik Ministry of Energy and Industry (MoEI). Chinese contractor Beijing Uni-Construction Group has installed the 600t/day cement kiln.

The Dushanbe cement plant has four large rotary kilns with capacity of 600t/day each and two small rotary kilns with capacity of 300t/day each. The 1.2Mt/yr plant has not been in operation since the beginning of 2013 due to a lack of natural gas.

Pakistan provides the majority of cement imports to Tajikistan, supplying 1.7Mt/yr.

Bangladesh: Loesche has been thanked by the Charity: Water non-government organisation for its donation towards a clean water project in the community of Lutarupara-Molliktola, Char region in Bangladesh. Thanks to the funding, the village has received a tube-well and now has access to clean water and sanitation.

Due to Loesche's donation in late 2011, 347 people in Lutarupara-Molliktola now have access to safe and clean drinking water. In December 2012 Loesche donated again to Charity: Water to help a community in Malawi that will be completed un 2014.

Charity: Water is a non-profit organisation that provides clean and safe drinking water in developing countries. In addition to helping communities access clear water the organisation trains beneficiaries on best sanitation and hygienic practices, safe water storage and water point management.

Trinidad: An appeal by Trinidad Cement to challenge an injunction by minority shareholders to block its annual general meeting has been postponed, according to Radio Jamaica News. The hearing was originally scheduled for Monday 30 September 2013.

Trinidad Cement 's annual general meeting on 12 July 2013 was stopped by a high court injunction with just one hour's notice. The injunction was part of legal action by a group of shareholders holding 5.68% of the company who want to nominate five directors to the cement producer's board.

United Arab Emirates: Turkish cement producer Adana Cement has won an award for safety performance improvement at the 11th Annual DuPont Safety and Sustainability Awards, which took place in Dubai on 24 September 2013. Six award recipients were selected by an independent jury comprised of leading experts in occupational safety and sustainability.

Adana Cement was chosen for its efforts to create a safe work environment. In 2005 the company established an integrated OHSAS 18001-certified Safety Management System, before implementing further processes and improvements in 2008 after recognition that 96% of accidents were caused by dangerous behaviour, rather than conditions.

Together, these initiatives have had a profound effect in shaping a positive safety culture among employees. In particular, a multi-faceted approach, including behaviour-oriented site visits, accident information meetings, reward and sanction practices and a schedule of continuous training programmes, has resulted in a dramatic decrease in employee and sub-contractor accidents since 2008, based on statistics collected since 2003. A new record of 243 uninterrupted days without an accident was achieved in 2012, in a period when expanding production objectives were successfully met.

Saudi Arabia: Al Jouf Cement has announced in a bourse filing it had signed an agreement with Saudi Arabia's largest Islamic bank, Al Rajhi Bank, for a US$107m loan to partially finance the construction of a second production line. The loan is to be repaid by June 2019.

Al Jouf Cement has a cement production capacity of 1.75Mt/yr or 5000t/day. The company's products include Ordinary Portland Cement and sulphate resisting cement.