White cement: beyond colour
The white cement market is no longer seen as simply a niche market solely dependent on the colour of the product for sales. Recent megatrends have been a key driver for leading white cement producer, Cementir Holding NV, to develop new and more sustainable products in premix, dry-mix, precast and ultra-high performance concrete. ICR looks to the future of white cement products and new applications with Michele Di Marino, Cementir’s chief sales, marketing and commercial development officer.
ICR: Can you give a brief history of the Cementir Group’s white cement development to where it is today?
Michele Di Marino (MDM): Cementir entered the white cement market with the acquisition of Aalborg Portland Group in early 2000. Activity has since mainly focussed on internal growth, including investments into our own plants, terminals and logistics. We expanded in Europe and Asia, while building a new plant in Anqing, China, and doubling capacity in Malaysia. In Egypt we invested in a second line and moved the plant from an older location to a new site.