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Philippines: A consortium, including a Lafarge subsidiary, has officially opened a refuse-derived fuel (RDF) facility at the Payatas landfill in Quezon City in the Philippines. Mundo Verde consists of Lafarge Industrial Ecology International SA, landfill operator IPM Environmental Services (IPM- ESI), waste management consultancy Basic Environmental Systems & Technologies (BEST), as well as engineering consultancy Pennies and Pounds Holdings.
"The facility will help reduce the volume of waste in the Payatas landfill, while at the same time produce RDF, an alternative fuel that can be used in the cement-making process," said Mundo Verde in a statement.
The facility started operations on 22 January 2013 and it is expected to increase RDF production to 150t/day from 50t/day. The landfill site receives an estimated 1200t/day of solid water of which about 30% will be processed by the facility. Waste processing is expected to prolong the lifespan of the landfill by three to four years.
The facility's RDF will be used at Lafarge Republic cement plants. Currently, coal comprises 75% of the cement producer's fuel with the remaining 25% made up of alternative fuels such as rice husks, discarded plastics, and sludge. RDF comprises 5 - 10% of the producer's alternative fuel use.
Philippines cement sales rise by 3% to 4.8Mt in Q1 24 April 2013
Philippines: Cement sales in the first quarter of 2013 have risen by 3% to 4.80Mt from 4.63Mt in the same period in 2012, due to increased demand driven by the peak construction season. Compared to the fourth quarter of 2012, sales rose by 8.5% from 4.41Mt.
Cement producers are preparing for capacity expansion due to existing strong domestic demand and an expected boost from the full implementation of huge infrastructure projects under the government's Public-Private Partnership (PPP) programme.
Capacity expansion projects include a Holcim Philippines plant of up to 2.5Mt/yr costing up to US$500m. The project, which is awaiting approval, is expected to be operational by 2017. Cemex is to raise capacity at its plant in APO by 1.5Mt/yr with an investment of US$65m. The project is expected to be operational by 2014. Lafarge Republic plans raise capacity by 1Mt/yr with an upgrade of its Danao grinding plant in Cebu and debottlenecking its Norzagaray plant's mill in Bulacan. By the first quarter of 2013, Lafarge hopes to supply an additional 0.2Mt/yr to Luzon, 0.65Mt/yr to Visayas and another 0.1Mt/yr to Mindanao.
The Cement Manufacturers Association of the Philippines (CeMAP) has petitioned the Board of Investments for the inclusion of the industry in the 2013 Investment Priorities Plan (IPP) to be eligible for government incentives, including an income tax holiday.
According to Eduardo Sahagun, CEO of Holcim Philippines, the Philippines cement industry has a total capacity of 21Mt/yr and in 2012 it sold 18.5Mt, a capacity utilisation rate of 85%. In 2012 the industry grew by an 'extraordinary' 18%, fuelled by private and public construction projects.
Lehigh fined US$50,000 for historic pollution 24 April 2013
US: Lehigh Northeast Cement has been fined US$50,000 by the state of New York for pollution violations relating to historic cement manufacturing at the company's plant in Cementon, also known as Smith's Landing in the state of New York. The site is currently a cement grinding plant.
In assessing the fine, the Department for Environmental Conservation (DEC) agreed to suspend US$10,000 from the total if Lehigh submits clean up and repair plans in the summer of 2013. In 2008, Lehigh was fined US$50,000 for similar problems with cement waste leaking through groundwater into the river from two other sites nearby. The company did not meet all clean-up goals set at that time.
Under a settlement with DEC signed on 8 April 2013 by DEC Regional Director Gene Kelly, Lehigh agreed to submit plans to clean up the sites and halt future leaks. The company also agreed to start using 'low-mercury' water treatment chemicals in its wastewater treatment system and also to begin checking its wastewater for acidity and lead levels.
In return, the company will have additional time to reach river pollution limits set in a DEC pollution permit issued in June 2011. Lehigh had initially contested those limits, but agreed under the settlement to drop its objections.
Lehigh said that historically some of the leaky sites had been capped, while others had not been using 'then-approved or accepted procedures.' The company added that it was working 'to contain and treat the leachate, under guidance and approval from DEC,' including installation of collection basins, and a pump-and-treat system to lower acidity of water before it reaches the river.
India: UltraTech Cement has reported that its profit after tax for the year ending 31 March 2013 rose by 8.5% to US$489m from US$450m. Net sales rose by 10% to US$3.69bn from US$3.34bn.
Although the Aditya Birla subsidiary offered no explanation for its performance it did state in its financial results that the year had seen continuing pressure on input and logistics costs from increases in railway freight and diesel prices, although the price of imported coal had declined. Combined cement and clinker sales of grey cement remained flat at 40.7Mt.
For the fourth quarter of the 2012 -2013 year, UltraTech reported that its profit after tax fell by 16.3% year-on-year to US$134m from US$160m. Net sales remained flat at US$991m.
With the commissioning of new projects in 2012 -2013, the cement producer's production capacity has increased by 4% to 50.9Mt/yr from 48.8Mt/yr. In its report UltraTech mentioned projects it had initiated during the year including a 3.3Mt/yr clinker plant at Rawan in Chhattisgarh, a 1.55Mt/yr grinding unit at Hotgi in Maharashtra and a cement production capacity increase of 0.60Mt/yr at a plant in Gujarat.
Future projects include a 3.3Mt/yr clinker plant in Karnataka that is expected to start operation in the first quarter of the 2014 - 2015 financial year. A 2.9Mt/yr capacity expansion at Aditya Cement Works in Rajasthan, costing US$368m, is expected to be commissioned by March 2015.
In its outlook UltraTech predicted that long-term cement demand is likely to grow by over 8% in line with GDP growth, driven by housing demand and infrastructure development.
Lithuania: The Competition Council has blocked a sale of 51% of shares in Akmene Cement to the Betoneta group. The regulator concluded that the market share, which the potential buyer would obtain after the takeover, would be too large.
Subsequently, Concretus Materials, which sought to acquire 51% of Akmenes Cementas' shares and which, according to the panel, is part of Betoneta group, said that it had withdrawn its application for regulatory clearance and cancelled the deal on the acquisition of the cement manufacturer's shares.
Mexican cement group Cemex owns a 33.95% stake in Akmenes Cementas. Other shareholders include Simonas Vytis Anuzis with 13.67%, Olius Danyla with 13.55%, Arnoldas Mituzas with 12.76% and Edmundas Montvila with 9.8%.