Fiji: Pacific Cement has temporarily halted cement production following another equipment failure, according to The Fiji Times. Parent company Fijian Holdings said in a statement to the South Pacific Stock Exchange on 14 January 2026 that the mill ceased production in mid-December 2025 due to a problem with the cement mill motor.

The company said “The works to address the motor issue have been completed, with full commissioning works currently underway this week before we can recommence production. Based on the technical evaluation, the estimated time-frame for completion is approximately one week. Normal supply will resume by next week [19 January 2026].”

Mill breakdowns at Pacific Cement have become a recurring issue, largely attributed to the age of the plant and its machinery. The facility began operations in 1962 and has faced frequent mechanical failures in recent years. Plans to replace the existing factory with a new plant ‘over the next two to three years’ were outlined by Fijian Holdings management at the company’s annual general meeting in 2024, but the project has yet to materialise. The plant had only just resumed production in July 2025 due to a mill breakdown in March 2025. At that time, the company said that it was ‘fast-tracking’ an upgrade of the mill to improve reliability.

Australia: 20Mt of fly ash from the disused Port Augusta power station will be converted into low-carbon cement under the ‘Green Cement Transformation Project’, backed by a US$8m concessional loan from the South Australian government. Peter Malinauskas, premier of South Australia, said the project would create around 150 jobs during construction and approximately 50 ongoing roles once operational. Construction is expected to begin by the end of 2026, according to ABC news.

Malinauskas said "[Hallett] has developed an outstanding new technology that is literally a game changer when it comes to cement production in Australia … which, in effect, doubles the production capacity of the whole state when it comes to cement production. [This] will take 20Mt of leftover fly ash from the Port Augusta power station and turn it into ‘green’ cement, with effectively a 60% carbon reduction on cement we would otherwise normally see." Malinauskas added that the project would address the ‘genuine shortage’ of cement and concrete throughout the state.

Two infrastructure hubs will be built at Port Augusta and Port Adelaide. These facilities will enable waste byproducts from the former Northern Power Station fly ash dam and the Nyrstar Port Pirie smelter to be repurposed into low-carbon cement products.

Egypt: Sky Ports Group has announced the start of construction of a bulk cement export terminal within its multi-purpose facility at Port Said, with a total investment of US$50m. The project is reportedly intended to boost cement exports and open access to new international markets, according to local press.

Tarek Hussein, chair of Sky Ports Group, said the feasibility study took nearly two years due to market challenges linked to a lack of internationally compliant bulk cement storage silos. This shortage has previously limited Egypt’s export capacity despite surplus domestic production. Hussein said the project aligns with the government’s strategy to increase exports of finished products and improve the competitiveness of Egyptian goods overseas. He added that strict import requirements in markets such as the US had constrained Egyptian bulk cement exports, and that the new terminal would remove these barriers.

The terminal will feature eight concrete silos, each with a capacity of 20,000t, giving total storage of 160,000t. It will have a handling capacity of 20,000t/day and a rate of 1000t/hr, allowing it to serve Panamax-class vessels. The project is being implemented through international partnerships with Spain, Germany and Denmark. Technical systems are reportedly being prepared in Denmark and Spain, with operations scheduled to commence in January 2026. The remaining silos will be delivered consecutively, two every four months, reaching full capacity by the end of 2027.

Once fully operational, the terminal is expected to increase Egypt’s cement export capacity to 4 - 6Mt/yr, while opening markets that previously could not receive Egyptian cement.

Afghanistan: Murat Dikmen, the Turkish consul general based in the city of Mazar-i-Sharif, has announced plans for the construction of a cement plant in northern Jowzjan province with an investment of more than US$150m. According to the governor’s office, Dikmen made the announcement during a meeting with Mawlawi Abdullah Sarhadi, the recently appointed governor of Jawzjan. The discussions focused on ongoing cooperation and Türkiye’s development programmes in the province. Dikmen said the proposed cement plant would involve an investment in the range of US$150m-200m and is expected to create employment opportunities for ‘hundreds of people’ once implemented.

The Turkish construction company 77 Inşaat previously signed a contract with The Ministry of Mines and Petroleum in Afghanistan in October 2024, worth approximately US$163m.