Indonesia: Heidelberg Materials subsidiary Indocement Tunggal Prakarsa has acquired a 20% stake in post-industrial and municipal resource management company Amita Prakarsa Hijau. Alongside recycling, Amita Prakarsa Hijau also produces refuse-derived fuels (RDF) for the cement sector. MarketLine News has reported that that the acquisition advances Indocement Tunggal Prakarsa's sustainable growth strategy.
Keystone Cement to transport hazardous materials by rail
US: Keystone Cement has sought permissions to transport hazardous materials by rail to its Bath cement plant in Pennsylvania. The Express-Times newspaper has reported that the producer plans to build a six-tank farm and a railcar unloading facility at the plant, scheduled for commissioning in early 2026, to receive the materials. The Bath plant currently receives 10 – 15 tanker trucks of hazardous material daily.
Keystone Cement said "Transporting the hazardous wastes to site by the existing regional and local rail system would reduce the number of tanker trucks on the roads."
Lafarge Canada launches low-carbon fuel facility at Exshaw plant
Canada: Lafarge Canada, a subsidiary of Holcim, has inaugurated a new low-carbon fuel facility at its Exshaw cement plant, in a joint effort with Geocycle Canada. The US$28m facility is supported by a US$7.4m contribution from Emissions Reduction Alberta through the government’s Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction fund. It will reduce natural gas consumption by up to 50% for one of the plant’s kilns by substituting it with alternative fuels (AF) sourced from construction and demolition materials, primarily wood. Geocycle will process the materials into AF. This initiative is expected to divert up to 120,000t/yr of discarded materials from landfill, reducing CO₂ emissions by approximately 30,000t/yr.
President and CEO of Lafarge Canada (West), Brad Kohl, said "Our commitment to building a sustainable future is at the core of everything we do. The low-carbon fuel project is a prime example of how innovation and collaboration can drive positive change, lowering our environmental footprint through the use of discarded biomass materials while closing the material loop to conserve natural resources.”
Colorado firm to build hydrogen plant at Ash Grove Cement plant
US: Colorado-based energy company NovoHydrogen plans to establish a hydrogen production facility at the Ash Grove Cement plant near Durkee, Oregon. Funded by the 2021 federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Act, the plant aims to start producing hydrogen fuel by 2028, according to CEO and founder Matt McMonagle. The hydrogen produced would be stored at the plant to be used to fuel trucks and other vehicles on-site, as well as potentially being used to power the plant. The construction of the plant will reportedly create 50 jobs.
Phillip Teintze, manager at the Durkee plant, said "The Ash Grove Cement Durkee plant is active in many opportunities to decarbonise our industry. Solutions for low carbon cement manufacturing are significantly challenging in terms of processes and expense. The Durkee plant is excited to see the development of NovoHydrogen’s efforts with the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub. As hydrogen becomes environmentally and economically viable, we believe our facility could act as a distribution site, and potentially utilise hydrogen as a fuel to displace traditional fossil fuels.”