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The Bosnian government has announced that it is to re-acquire the building materials business of Granit following embezzlement of some €5.6million by the private owners. The move was made following a ruling of the municipal court and the government has said that a new privatisation process will be started once the government has established a new management structure for the business.

Cemex France has announced a number of new appointments and job changes following a reorganisation. Christian Béranger is now director of sustainable development, while Jacky Borel replaces Armand Delclos as director of Cemex Bétons Rhône-Alpes Auvergne and Philippe Desvignes has been appointed deputy director of Cemex Granulats Val de Seine. Philippe Grandidier is to replace Roberto Zambrano as director of strategic planning.

Lafarge has expanded its aggregates operations in the Ukraine with the opening of the new Koscheevsky quarry in the Kiev region. The company has invested €12million to develop the 900,000tonne per year capacity granite quarry, which gives the company a 10% market share in the Ukraine.

Holcim has announced that it has signed an agreement with the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela on terms for Venezuela’s compensation payment for the June 2008 nationalization of Holcim Venezuela. The company has also agreed to suspend the international arbitration procedure. Under the agreement, Venezuela will pay Holcim US$650million. Holcim has confirmed that it has received an initial payment of US$260million and the remaining US$390million will be paid in four equal yearly instalments.

Heidelberg Cement has announced that it has expanded its operation in Africa following signing of an agreement with George Forrest to buyout operations in the Democratic republic of Congo. The deal will see Heidelberg acquire a 55% stake in the Cimenterie de Lukala (CILU) cement plant, located close to the capital city of Kinshasa, and of 70 % in the two Interlacs plants, located in the eastern part of the country. The Forrest Group will retain a 30% stake in the operations.

Baron’s Haugh RSPB (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds) Reserve near Motherwell in Scotland was the venue for the launch of Cemex’s new volunteer programme for the UK. Workers from Cemex’s Uddingston office and nearby operational sites volunteered under the Lendahand programme to remove invasive scrub, clear woodland and monitor birdlife at the reserve.

CBR-Harmignies has announced that it is to invest €3.2million in a new cement kiln and platform for stocking solid fuel at its cement plant in Belgium. The Heidelberg Cement subsidiary has also announced that it is working in partnership with Eneco and Windvision to install two 6MW wind turbines.

Italy-based Italcementi is restructuring its position in Sardinia and Sicily with news of an acquisition and asset sell off. The company is reported to have acquired Sardinia-based Star, which specialises in pre-packed concrete, from Promoport. While in Sicily, the company has sold off parts of Calcestruzzi to Betonir, which is a subsidiary of Cementir, for a combination of cash and exchange of assets including a 30% stake in Speedybeton and a 15% stake in Cemencal.

Cemex France has officially opened its newly upgraded Sorèze quarry in South Western France. The company has invested €9million in the aggregate processing plant at the site to increase automation and reduce dust and noise produced at the site. Production at the quarry is expected to be maintained at the current level of 500,000tonnes per year.

Aggregate handling and bagging at two of Day Aggregates’ sites in London have been boosted with delivery of three new Volvo wheeled loaders. The two L180Fs will be used for stockpiling, rehandling and loading road wagons at the company’s Purley and Charlton aggregate reception facilities while the new L120F will be used for bagging operations. The two larger new machines replace similar sized machines in the Day fleet that have clocked up around 13000 hours over the last five years.

Developing an EU strategy for security of supply of raw materials for Europe will be a key topic at this year's European Minerals Forum. The importance of having an EU strategy for the security of supply of aggregates will be one of the main topics discussed at this year's European Minerals Forum. EC vice president Günter Verheugen will present the European Commission's Raw Materials Initiative to an invited audience of senior industry representatives at the event on 26 November in Brussels.

Lafarge is to receive €450,000 from Operational Program for the Development of Human Resources which is supported by the EU to help fund training for staff in Romania. The company submitted plans for three training projects for the region, all of which have been approved for funding.

Quarry operators in Europe could be in line for some bargains with Iron Planet’s latest auction announcement. The company’s next auction on 21 September includes over 70 items of quarrying and mining equipment. The company has said that equipment for sale includes crushers, wheeled loaders, crawler tractors and screens located throughout Europe. Sellers in the mining and quarrying industry will benefit through no dismantling or transportation cost on these types of machines. Buyers benefit by sourcing minin

Following the acquisition of Tarmac Matériaux de Construction by Fondations Capital in May 2010, the company has announced that its name is to be changed to Alkern with immediate effect. The former Tarmac division produces prefabricated concrete products and operates across Belgium and France with 600 employees in the regions.

Titan Cement subsidiary, Antea Cement, has inaugurated its new 1.5million tonne per year cement plant in Kruja, Albania. The new facility, which was financed by the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, will help meet domestic demand and create surplus material for export.

After 44 years in the aggregates business most people would be looking forward to retirement but Tarmac's Bernie Higgins has taken on a new challenge instead. The growing importance placed on increasing biodiversity has led to development of new courses and degrees designed to create a skilled workforce to take on the challenge. But this new breed of ecologist does not necessarily have a good understanding of the needs and demands of the aggregates business.

That is where Tarmac's first biodiversity of

UK-based Border Aggregates has announced that it is to invest in upgrading its aggregates packaging plant with a new system from Chronos BTH. The new packing system is due for installation later this year and is being supplied on a turnkey basis as part of Border’s plant expansion and upgrade programme. Once installed the packing system will be used for filling pre-made polyethylene bags with various products at rates of up to 800bags/hour.

Lafarge has announced the appointment of a new managing director for part of its UK operations. Shaun Davidson is to take on the role for the asphalt and contracting divisions. He moves from the position of vice-president general manager of Lafarge’s Central European division to the new pots but was also previously a director of the UK asphalt business.

Cemex has announced that its Croatian cement operations will be managed by Marijan Vuko following his appointment as director earlier this month.

France’s aggregates association Unicem has presented a special award to Vicat for its commitment to biodiversity. It was the company’s efforst at its Saint-Jean-le-Vieux in Ain which helped Vicat gain this recognition.