Finland: Norway-based Geminor inaugurated a new 150,000t/yr refuse-derived fuel (RDF) import facility at the Kilke Material Recycling Centre near Helsinki on 30 November 2023. The site is Geminor’s third such facility in Finland.

Country Manager Ismo Hiltunen said “Due to, among other things, lower activity in the construction industry, RDF fractions have become a scarce commodity in Finland.” He continued “After Finland became an import market for secondary fuels, the market has struggled to find processing sites for imported waste in Finland, a challenge this facility will now help to solve. The capacity of 150,000t/yr means that we could import up to 80% of Finland's current total RDF imports via this hub alone.”

Philippines: Holcim Philippines recorded sales of US$332m during the first nine months of 2023. This represents a 4% drop from nine-month 2022 levels. The producer reported operating earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) of US$25.2m. Throughout the period, Holcim Philippines co-processed 800,000t of alternative fuel (AF) at its plants. Blended cement products ended September 2023 at 75% of its cement sales.

Taiwan: Asia Cement Corporation tested its waste wind turbine blade processing capacities using 12t of blades earlier in November 2023. The cement producer had previously processed 9t of waste turbine blades for use in its plants up to the end of October 2023. Asia Cement Corporation says that the waste consists of fibre-reinforced plastic (FRP), which is 60% silicon dioxide, calcium oxide and aluminium oxide and 40% polyester. The polyester can replace fossil fuels as alternative fuel (AF) for cement plants, while the other chemical compounds can serve as supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs).

Bangladesh: LafargeHolcim Bangladesh has expanded its waste management network through a new memorandum of understanding (MoU) with textiles industry body the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA). Under the MoU, LafargeHolcim Bangladesh’s waste management subsidiary Geocycle will begin providing its services to BGMEA’s member companies.

The Financial Express newspaper has reported that LafargeHolcim Bangladesh CEO Mohammad Iqbal Chowdhury said “BGMEA is committed to the sustainable waste management of the clothing industry and unique solutions like Geocycle can play a pivotal role in addressing the waste challenges of the industry.”