India: Dalmia Bharat has commenced commercial operations at its new Sattur cement plant in Tamil Nadu. The 2Mt/yr grinding plant will serve the growing South Indian market. The new facility raises Dalmia Bharat’s installed production capacity by 4.8% to 43.7Mt/yr

Kenya: East African Portland Cement Company (EAPCC) says that it is ready to resume full-scale cement production at its 600,000t/yr Athi River cement plant. The Standard newspaper has reported that the plant is currently operating at 50% capacity, following refurbishment. EAPCC replaced a 16m-long section of kiln shell in the plant's clinker line, at a cost of US$3.5m. Managing director Oliver Kirubai said that the company raised the funds through the sale of land located in Athi River.

Kirubai said "Our employees have cut back a lot, in a situation where we have been struggling even to pay their salaries. We are now back on our feet." He added "A number of companies owed us millions of Shillings. They have been ordered to pay us by the government. If they honour the agreement, the problem we are facing will be a thing of the past.”

EAPCC says that it expects the scale-up of production at the Athi River plant to help lower the cost of cement for its customers.

India: Aditya Birla subsidiary UltraTech Cement has more than doubled its Magdalla grinding plant’s capacity to 1.93Mt/yr. The unit is based in Gujarat. The producer now has an installed cement capacity of 132Mt/yr.

Nigeria: Lafarge Africa's sales were US$257m during the first half of 2023, up by 5.9% year-on-year from US$242m during the first half of 2022. Costs rose and the company's profit after tax fell by 5.2%.

Lafarge Africa said "Our strategic and cost management initiatives have contributed to improved results, despite the challenges. We remain steadfast in our commitment to driving innovation and accelerating green growth in line with our sustainability ambitions and targets." The company added "The Nigerian infrastructure and construction sector is expected to continue to grow despite inflationary pressure on purchasing power. As a result, we maintain our positive outlook, with market recovery expected for the second half of the year. We will continue to maximise volume opportunities across our markets and actively manage our costs. The company remains committed to its sustainability ambitions and strategy of Accelerating Green Growth.”