Sweden: SaltX Technology and Holcim have produced Portland-quality clinker using a fully electrified process, following industrial-scale testing at SaltX’s test and research centre in Hofors, Sweden. Holcim’s cement raw meal was calcined using only electricity and then sintered using SaltX’s new electric clinker reactor. The company says it eliminates the need for a fossil-fuel powered kiln and demonstrates a ‘fundamentally new approach’ to cement production. The resulting clinker reportedly meets industrial quality requirements.

CEO of SaltX Lina Jorheden said “This marks a major step forward in demonstrating that a fully electrified cement process is not only possible but can be implemented in an industrial setting. Electrifying both calcination and sintering is key to enabling this shift, and the results demonstrate a new approach to cement production.”

Head of Holcim MAQER Ventures Bengt Steinbrecher said “SaltX demonstrated that their electrification solution is able to produce clinker of Portland quality. This is a strong validation of their technology and an important step on the industrial scale-up roadmap for future cement production.”

The results are a step forward toward the planned pilot plant. SaltX will provide further updates about the development as the project progresses.

Jamaica: The kiln upgrade at Caribbean Cement failed to lift output past 1Mt in 2025, as production declined to below 2020 levels, according to The Gleaner, citing the company’s annual report. The kiln was commissioned in April - May 2025, but Hurricane Melissa struck in October 2025, leading to temporary disruptions. The company reported cement production of 864,000t in 2025, down from 870,000t in 2024. However, managing director of Caribbean Cement Jorge Alejandro Martínez Mora said that the kiln project “fully achieved, and in some cases exceeded, its objectives related to safety, cost, schedule, emissions compliance and production performance, increasing clinker capacity to 2850t/day.”

The company said that the US$42m debottlenecking project was intended to improve output from 1Mt/yr to 1.3Mt/yr, but hurricanes in both 2024 and 2025 had disrupted operations and limited output. It also said that going forward, operations could see ‘uncertainty’, with higher input costs due to the Iran war, which had ‘significantly disrupted global oil and gas supplies’. Caribbean Cement reportedly spent US$27m on fuel and electricity in 2025. However, it said that the domestic market was expected to remain ‘relatively resilient.’

Global: Heidelberg Materials will scale deployment of autonomous heavy mobile equipment across its global operations, targeting around 30 vehicles in 2026. The rollout will extend to six sites and two vehicle types in North America, Australia and Europe. It follows earlier deployment of an autonomous haulage system (AHS) at its Lake Bridgeport quarry in Texas.

In North America, Heidelberg Materials is extending its AHS programme to sites in Indiana and Texas. In Australia, the company is launching its first AHS projects at quarries in New South Wales and Western Australia. In Europe, Heidelberg Materials is trialling an autonomous wheel loader at a sand and gravel pit in Northern Germany.

The company said the systems use sensors, cameras and AI to autonomously operate the equipment in complex, dynamic environments to improve safety and operational performance. Heidelberg Materials plans to deploy more than 100 autonomous vehicles by 2028 as part of a broader initiative.

Germany: ABB and alcemy have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to develop AI solutions for cement and concrete quality optimisation. The partnership will integrate alcemy’s predictive technology with ABB’s automation and process control systems to improve production efficiency, reduce variability and lower CO₂ emissions. The system will analyse process data and feed adjustments back into plant operations to improve performance. ABB said that the closed-loop approach will reduce process variability and refine product consistency, ‘closing the gap’ between data and process optimisation.

Global manager for cement at ABB’s Process Industries division Bodil Recke said “Artificial intelligence is becoming an important enabler for the future of cement production. Bringing together ABB’s expertise in automation, process control and optimisation with alcemy’s AI and industry expertise, we aim to help cement producers improve performance while supporting their decarbonisation targets.”

alcemy CEO Leopold Spenner said “Working with ABB allows us to bring predictive quality insights closer to plant operations. Together, we want to help the cement industry achieve more consistent results – improving efficiency while reducing environmental impact.”