Cement News tagged under: USA

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US recovery to hold firm?

22 January 2016, Published under Cement News

With this week seeing equity markets in turmoil and concerns over global economic growth conditions intensifying, question marks have been raised over whether US construction activity will be able to hold firm. Recent indicators are largely supporting expectations of continued growth in US construction activity. The latest housing data for December showed continued strong growth in both permits and starts, which were up by 15 and six per cent, respectively. Broader economic statistics als...

US November shipments - preliminary data

21 January 2016, Published under Cement News

Preliminary data from the US Geological Survey shows that Portland and blended cement shipments in November 2015 reached 7.3Mt including 767,000t of imports. Shipments for the year to the end of November totalled 84.93Mt, the provisional data shows. Of the total, imports represented 8.93Mt. Clinker production in November was 6.76Mt and for the first 11 months of 2015 reached 69.62Mt, according to the preliminary figures.

US October shipments down 2.2% YoY

18 January 2016, Published under Cement News

Total shipments of Portland and blended cement in the US and Puerto Rico in October 2015 were about 9.3Mt, down by 2.2 per cent from the level in October 2014, data from the US Geological Survey (USGS) shows. Shipments for the year through October totalled 77.6Mt, up by 2.6 per cent for the same period in 2014. The leading producing states for Portland and blended cement in October were Texas, Missouri, California, Florida and Michigan, in descending order, and these states accounted for 41...

Groundbreaking for MBT resource recovery facility, USA

13 January 2016, Published under Cement News

Entsorga West Virginia announced the groundbreaking of the US’s first resource recovery facility utilising Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT). The state-of-the-art waste-to-solid fuel plant will be located in Martinsburg, WV, and is expected to be operational in early 2017. Entsorga WV is a joint venture between Apple Valley Waste Technologies, LLC, Entsorga USA and Chemtex International.   “This is a significant milestone for the United States and we are truly thrilled to be providing th...

Fitch upgrades Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua's ratings to 'BB'; outlook Stable

13 January 2016, Published under Cement News

Fitch Ratings has upgraded Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua (GCC) local and foreign currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) to 'BB' from 'BB-'. Fitch also upgraded GCC's US$260m senior notes due 2020 to 'BB' from 'BB-'. The rating outlook is Stable. The ratings upgrade reflects the strengthening of US residential construction across several of the company's markets as well as a favourable economic environment in northern Mexico that should support cement demand in the state of Chihuahua. Robust...

Votorantim

05 January 2016, Published under Cement News

Votorantim subsidiary St Mary’s Cement is proposing to spend around US$130m to a kiln expansion and modernisation programme at its works at Charlevoix, Michigan, USA. This is expected to increase the capacity from the current 1.4Mta to 2Mta.  Elsewhere, Votorantim’s Spanish subsidiary, Cementos Cosmos, has celebrated three accident-free years as the parent company spent in excess of EUR1m to improve the company’s health and safety record.

USA: Lehigh Cement welcomes Energy Star certificates

05 January 2016, Published under Cement News

HeidelbergCement subsidiary Lehigh Hanson has announced that several of its plants have achieved the EPA’s ENERGY STAR ® certification for 2015. Lehigh’s cement plants in Leeds (AL), Union Bridge (MD) and Glen Falls (NY) all performed within the top 25 per cent of cement plants in the USA for energy efficiency, meeting strict energy efficiency performance levels set by the EPA. This is the third-consecutive year the Union Bridge facility has received the certification and the second con...

USA: Lehigh Hanson EPA hat-trick

23 December 2015, Published under Cement News

Lehigh Hanson Inc announced that three of its cement plants have earned the US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) prestigious ENERGY STAR certification for 2015. The company’s cement manufacturing plants in Leeds (AL), Union Bridge (MD) and Glens Falls (NY) perform within the top 25 per cent of cement plants nationwide for energy efficiency and meet the EPA's strict energy efficiency performance levels. This is the third-consecutive year the Union Bridge plant has received ENERGY S...

St Marys Cement modernises kiln

22 December 2015, Published under Cement News

Votorantim-owned St Marys Cement is proposing a US$130m kiln modernisation project at its Charlevoix, Michigan, USA, plant. The project will lead to lower emissions, improved efficiency and increased production. The expansion will see capacity increase from 1.4Mta to 2Mta. At present the cement producer is working through the permitting process, but it expects the upgraded pyroprocessing section to start up in 2Q2017.  “In April of 2017, we plan on starting up this new modernised kiln sys...

Optimism returns to US and wider markets

18 December 2015, Published under Cement News

This week saw the first rise in US interest rates in seven years as the US Federal Reserve signalled its belief that the economy was getting back on its feet and that the financial recovery was gaining momentum. The renewed optimism for the US economy and the prospects for greater cement consumption in the coming year is based on a more vigorous uptake of construction and housing projects. The strength of the recovery is far from certain though and financial markets will need to see contin...