News

Dangote Cement of Nigeria is reported as planning to spend some US$100 million in Ghana.

At Takoradi, plans to build a new cement grinding plant and power station, with completion by the end 2017, will see the company capable of producing 1.5 million tonnes of cement/year to meet local and West African demand.

The US $40 billion Giant Sea Wall in the Indonesian capital Jakarta is aimed at improving flood defences and enhancing urban development.

Officially called the National Capital Integrated Coastal Development (NCICD) master plan, the scheme is in the bay north pf the capital.

It is reported that Nantapong Chantrakul, the country director for Siam Cement Group (SCG) Indonesia, says the cement company is looking to supply material to the project, a joint project between Indonesia and the Netherlands.

Zoomlion has ended its big money bid to acquire Terex Corporation. In a statement to customers, Ken Lousberg, Terex Cranes president, said that discussions between the two construction equipment industry heavyweights over a near US$3.4 billion deal had been terminated. Lousberg said the recently announced sale of Terex Corporation’s Material Handling and Port Solutions business segment to Finland-based Konecranes for around $1.3 billion is proceeding as planned, subject to regulatory and Konecranes shareho

Federcostruzioni and Veronafiere have joined forces to support growth in the Italian earthmoving and construction equipment sector through their joint promotion of the Samoter 2017 exhibition. Confindustria-affiliated Federcostruzioni is a key champion of the Italian construction sector and Veronafiere organises the Samoter trade fair, Italy’s only exhibition covering all construction machinery sectors, staged every three years. The pair have signed a cooperation agreement ahead of the next Samoter event s

Ethiopia is planning a series of road projects as part of its Growth & Transformation Plan. These road projects are worth close to US$128 million in total, with the plans being managed by the Ethiopian Roads Authority (ERA). Four construction companies have been awarded the contracts by the ERA. The Chinese contractor CGC Overseas Construction Group will rebuild the 60km Shambu-Backo link in a deal worth $45.7 million, providing the existing gravel road with a new asphalt surface. Local contractor Yemene Gi

Cemex has closed the sale of its operations in Bangladesh and Thailand to Siam City Cement for around US$53 million.

The proceeds obtained from this transaction will be used mainly for debt reduction and for general corporate purposes, the Mexican building materials giant has stated.

German building materials giant HeidelbergCement has received clearance from the European Commission for the acquisition of Italcementi. The proposed divestment of operations in Belgium, primarily consisting of Italcementi’s Belgian subsidiary Compagnie des Ciments Belges (CCB), which addresses the competition concerns in Europe, was accepted by the European Commission. The decision of the US regulator FTC is still pending.

Institute of Quarrying (IQ) CEO Phil James is leaving for a new role after four years in charge of the UK-based organisation.

He had joined the IQ in late 2012 as joint CEO with MPQC and drew on his rare combination of quarry management experience and professional body expertise in executing his senior role.

James will become the new CEO of the Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM) in September 2016. In his new post he plans to continue his link with the minerals industry and to combine the cha

Oficemen, the Spanish organisation that represents a sector that is leader in the production of clinker and cement, is reported as saying cement consumption in the country dropped in April.

The 3.3% drop to 946,329tonnes follows the 1.2% drop to 3.5 million tonnes for the combined January-April period in 2016.

The association says that with a decrease of some 30% in the tendering of civil works in Q1, 2016 compared to 2015, and an 18% drop in exports in April, the outlook is not optimistic.

In the Philippines, cement sales of over 6.4 million tonnes between January and March, 2016, are said to show a 12.8% increase compared to the same period in 2015 (5.6 million tonnes). With private construction increasing by 5% in 2015, and public construction showing a 21% rise, Ernesto Ordonez, president of the Cement Manufacturers Association of the Philippines, believes that the demand for cement products will stay positive. During 2015, the sales of cement totalled over 24 million tonnes compared to 21

It is being reported that the Korea Development Bank (a state-run operation) and other creditors are seeking to sell their 95% stake in Hyundai Cement. An investment bank is expected to be chosen by July to continue with the sale of the cement company, which it is understood have been previously bailed out by local banks t. Accounting for an estimated 10% of the cement sale, it is believed that interest in the sale would be mostly from local companies.

Exports of the famous Italian Carrara marble are said to have increased by 8.8% year-on-year in 2015.

Reports say the exports were worth over €700 million, while processed marble exports from the Carrara region also showed an increase of 11.4% over 2014 with sales standing at €536 million,

Terex Corporation has said that it has agreed with Finnish company Konecranes to mutually terminate the Business Combination Agreement (BCA) the companies entered into on 10 August, 10, 2015, without payment of a fee by either party.

In connection with the termination of the BCA, Terex has signed a definitive agreement to sell its Material Handling and Port Solutions business (MHPS) to Konecranes for total consideration of approximately US$1.3 billion. The consideration being paid is comprised of $820 mi

LafargeHolcim has appointed Caroline Luscombe as the group’s new Head of Organisation and Human Resources and member of the executive committee from 1 July, 2016, based in Zurich, Switzerland.

In this role she will take over responsibility for organisation and human resources from Jean-Jacques Gauthier, Chief Integration Officer – Organization and Human Resources.

Caroline Luscombe joins LafargeHolcim from Syngenta where she has been Head of Human Resources since January 2010 and a member of the execu