Global Cement News

India: Dalmia Bharat CEO and managing director Mahendra Singhi will continue to serve as president of the Cement Manufacturers’ Association (CMA), a role to which he was previously appointed in December 2018. Signhi said, “Indian cement is working on low carbon technology map and remaining fully sustainable. I look forward to making 2020 an even more prolific year.” The Indian Express has reported that the new CMA vice president will be LafargeHolcim subsidiary ACC CEO and managing director Neeraj Akhouri.

Ireland: CRH has appointed Shaun Kelly as a non-executive director and chairman of the Audit Committee.

Kelly, aged 60 years, a dual Irish and US citizen, was the Global Chief Operating Officer of KPMG International until September 2019, where he was responsible for the execution of the firm’s global strategy and for the delivery of various global initiatives. Over a 30-year career with KPMG, the majority of which was spent in the US, he held a variety of roles, including Partner in Charge, US Transaction Services (2001 - 2005), Vice Chair and Head of US Tax (2005 - 2010) and Vice Chair Operations and Chief Operating Officer Americas (2010 - 2015), before his appointment as Global Chief Operating Officer in 2015.

Kelly is a fellow of Chartered Accountants Ireland, a US Certified Public Accountant and graduated from University College Dublin with a Bachelor of Commerce and Diploma in Professional Accounting. He also holds an honorary doctorate from Queen’s University Belfast.

US: Lehigh Cement and Lehigh White Cement have agreed to an investment of US$12m for the installation of pollution control technology across their 11 active cement plants. US Fed News has reported that the upgrades can be expected to reduce net emissions of nitrous oxised (NO_x) by 4550t/yr and sulphur dioxide (SO₂) by 989t/yr. Lehigh Cement will additionally pay a US$1.3m civil penalty for past Clean Air Act violations.

India: UltraTech Cement has announced a planned expansion of its Bhogasamundram waste heat recovery (WHR) power plant to 36MW from 20MW. The plant serves its 5.6Mt/yr integrated Andhra Pradesh cement plant. The upgrade is part of an investment of US$14.0m which will also serve to expand the area of the cement plant by 326 hectares.

Pakistan: The Peshawar High Court has rejected a petition by local residents to prevent the construction of a US$245m cement plant in Haripur by the military Frontier Works Organisation. The Balochistan Times has reported that the project will entail the relocation of people from an area of 0.66km2 and the felling of ‘thousands of trees.’ The Supreme Court gave a preliminary hearing to the case on 2 December 2019, giving the Attorney General, Advocate General Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Defence Ministry until 9 December 2019 to submit their replies.