Ecuador: Sambito, the Ecuadorian environmental consultant, has endorsed the certification of two LafargeHolcim cement products as carbon neutral. Metro Ecuador has reported that both Agrovial and Base Vial, prepared at low heats for foundations and roads respectively, have 54% lower emissions than ‘traditional’ cement. Carbon neutrality was achieved by Holcim Ecuador’s ownership of the 6078 hectare Cerro Blanco Protected Forest, 2175 hectares of which suffices to offset the emissions from production of both products.

Oman: Oman Cement has engaged the services of a leading consulting company for construction of its 1.8Mt/yr integrated cement plant in Duqm. The company announced the appointment of the consultancy firm to its US$212m project, which has been ongoing since December 2018, on 12 September 2019.

India: Barathi Cement has commissioned a 10MW solar power station at its 5.0Mt/yr integrated Barathi Cement Plant. The Hindu Times has reported that the facility, which spans 16.6 hectares, will partially replace combustion-derived electricity sources at the plant.

Brazil: Votorantim Cimentos has created a business unit to manage and provide services throughout the co-processing chain of alternative materials used in cement production with a five-year investment plan of US$98m. Valor has reported that the unit, named Verdera, will offer waste disposal services to various industries. Votorantim is targeting 80% petrocoke use in future cement production, compared to 25% at present. Its 2018 production used 0.9Mt of alternative materials, corresponding to a reduction of 0.5Mt in CO2 emissions compared with conventional materials.