Italcementi has committed to investing US$320m into the development of its plant at Martinsburg in the US state of West Virginia. The investment will create 250 jobs over the next two years, during which the most advanced technologies will be installed at the plant. Italcementi’s CEO, Carlo Pesenti, has said that fears of a slump in the US market are exaggerated and should not put a stop to growth projects in the country, adding that the north-east, where Italcementi operates through its Essroc subsidiary, was particularly stable. He went on to criticise other Italian businesses for not investing in the US.