Austria: Lafarge Austria and Perlmooser Beton will operate under the new name Holcim Austria from May 2023. Both companies have been part of Holcim Group since 2015. The rebranding exercise follows the renaming of LafargeHolcim as Holcim that took place in mid-2021.
Lafarge Austria operates two cement plants, at Mannersdorf and Retznei respectively, with a total production capacity of 1.6Mt/yr. Its headquarters is in Vienna. The company employs around 250 people.
Estonia: The Estonian Competition Authority has granted permission to Schwenk Eesti to gain a majority stake in ready-mix concrete producer Betoonimeister. Baltic Business Daily News has reported that Betoonimeister's six ready-mix concrete batching plants are located in Tallinn, Tartu, Johvi, Tapa and Parnu.
World: Cemex has announced the launch of new bio-based admixtures which offer CO2 emissions reductions of up to 70% compared to oil-based admixtures in its Asian, European and Middle Eastern markets. The range includes 10% reduced-CO2 IsoPlast Bio, 20 - 30% reduced-CO2 IsoFlex Bio plasticisers and superplasticisers and 50% reduced-CO2 IsoFlow Bio high-performance superplasticiser technology, as well as CO2-reducing IsoMill Bio grinding aids. The products will subsequently become available in other markets during 2023.
CEO Fernando González said “Innovation is at the core of our efforts to become a carbon neutral company and foster a more circular building materials industry." He added "Innovative admixtures aim to enhance concrete's sustainable attributes for our customers further.”
Canada: Lafarge Canada has signed an agreement with power provider TransAlta to recover and process fly ash from the site of the latter's decommissioned Edmonton coal-fired power plant. The project will use Ash-TEK's Ponded Ash Beneficiation System (PABS) fly ash beneficiation technology. The processed ash will then be able to replace up to 25% of cement in low-CO2 concrete production.
TransAlta previously secured with Lafarge Canada for the supply of renewable power to its Exshaw, Alberta, cement plant in February 2022.
