Europe & CIS

On 22 September 2009, Cemex opened a new cement grinding and blending plant at the port of Tilbury in Essex.

Carbon leakage is a hot topic at the moment, with industries and economies both fearful of losing out to countries that are not subject to the same stringent environmental regulations.

Statistics indicate that if less than 0.5% of the total area of sunny deserts in the world were covered with CSP plants, they would produce as much electricity as is currently being used by the whole world.

Cement and clinker trade is facing a downward trend, and not just because of the economic downturn. Massive investment in capacity expansion has led to oversupply situations in countries around the world, turning importing countries into exporters.

Co-processing in the cement industry is the optimum way of recovering energy and material from waste. It offers a safe and sound solution for society, the environment and the cement industry.

Metso has won a €27 million contract to supply equipment for the Norsk Stein Jelsa quarry expansion. Once completed, production capacity at the quarry will have doubled.

Concrete is the world’s most versatile and most used industrial product, but it is made with cement, a product with more CO₂ emissions than any other. How then can we produce sustainable concrete?

Gypsum is a construction mineral eternally recyclable, quarried worldwide and used in an outstanding sustainable way in buildings. Gypsum building materials are used in all construction types (residential, non-residential, new or refurbished).

Restoration planning and implementation is an integral part of successful quarrying. Increasing emphasis on environmental protection means that, for many, a rehabilitation plan is an essential part of the permitting process.

The International Energy Agency has released two new publications that put forward ideas to ‘decarbonise’ the energy sector and other CO₂ intensive industries.

In Lafarge Cement UK’s latest annual sustainability report, which includes highlights of the group’s performance in 2008, figures show that the company has made considerable achievements in its quest for improved environmental performance.

Over the past twenty years cement manufacturers have had to become more competitive to stay in business, due to consolidation in the cement sector, rising energy prices, competing construction materials, eradication of national pricing agreements and rising labour costs. Therefore many managers in cement plants have tried to understand what makes a cement works run at its maximum efficiency.

Cement production is responsible for approximately 5% of the global, man-made CO₂ emissions. As urbanisation and industrialisation continues, so the demand for cement is set to more than double by 2030.