Japan: Mitsubishi UBE Cement has announced that it will cease cement production at its Kyushu Plant in Kanda No. 2 District, Kanda-cho, Fukuoka Prefecture by the end of March 2027, according to Nikkei Business Trends. The company said that its decision was made in an increasingly challenging business environment including declining domestic cement demand and worsening profitability in the export market.

Cement production at the plant's Kanda No. 2 District will be consolidated into the Kanda No. 1 District in the same area to improve efficiency. The Kanda No. 2 District plant will be converted into a waste processing and alternative fuel production site to supply the remaining plant. The company aims to reach carbon neutrality by 2050.

India: Nuvoco Vistas, the cement arm of the Nirma Group, 'bounced back' from losses to record a consolidated net profit of US$5.4m for the quarter ending 31 December 2025, the third quarter of India’s 2026 Fiscal Year (FY2026). It made a US$6.7m loss. Despite this it reported the company’s highest-ever cement sales volume for a third fiscal quarter at 5Mt, a 7% increase year-on-year. Consolidated revenue from operations rose by 12% to US$297m, while earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBIDTA) rose by 50% to US$42.5m.

Jayakumar Krishnaswamy, Managing Director, said, “December 2025 saw healthy double-digit growth after early demand softness from monsoons and festivities. We delivered our highest third-quarter volume and a 50% rise in EBITDA. Our Vadraj cement plant refurbishment is progressing steadily, and our focus on premium products and operational efficiency will strengthen our long-term competitive advantage.”
The company is also advancing its strategic capacity expansion in eastern India and at its Vadraj plant in Gujarat. The clinker and grinding units at Vadraj are planned to start operations in phases from the third quarter of FY2027, which will increase Nuvoco’s total cement capacity to 35Mt/yr.

Brazil: CSN has announced a US$3.4bn debt reduction plan including the sale of its cement production assets, according to Business News Americas. These have a combined capacity of 16.3Mt/yr. It also intends to sell a significant stake in its infrastructure segment, including rail, port and multimodal assets, but will continue to invest in its mining arm CSN Mineração.

According to the chair of the CSN group, Benjamin Steinbruch, the decision to sell some of the conglomerate’s assets comes amid a challenging environment, with high interest rates in Brazil, which put pressure on the company’s indebtedness.

“We believe that all our assets are quite profitable, and although we believe in an improvement in all our lines of business in 2026, we decided that waiting longer for a scenario of interest rate cuts does not make sense,” said Steinbruch. “That is why we embraced this strategy to reduce debt. This sale of assets of US$3.4bn would be equivalent to about half of our debt.”

US: Heidelberg Materials North America says it has autonomously hauled more than 2Mt of limestone at its Lake Bridgeport Quarry in Texas over the course of the past eight months. It used an autonomous haulage system (AHS) supplied by Pronto. The building materials company said that this achievement reflects a significant milestone in the its journey to lead the building materials industry in digitalisation.

Following a pilot project at its Bridgeport Quarry in 2023, Heidelberg Materials North America deployed a mixed fleet of OEM haul trucks with Pronto’s AHS at its neighbouring Lake Bridgeport Quarry. The Lake Bridgeport site transported more than 2Mt of stone from the pit to the crusher over the course of eight months.

Heidelberg Materials says that the deployment shows how digital technology can improve efficiency, safety, environmental performance and increase productivity. The switch also helped local management cope with the challenge of recruiting skilled haul truck operators at the site.

“We are excited to mark this important milestone at our Lake Bridgeport Quarry,” said Chris Ward, President and CEO of Heidlberg Materials North America. “The successful deployment of Pronto’s AHS technology at Lake Bridgeport showcases our strong commitment to leveraging innovative and scalable solutions at our operations that contribute to enhancing efficiency and safety while also addressing the recruiting challenges we face at many of our operations across North America.”