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Building materials groups Lafarge and Holcim have formally notified the European Commission of their merger plan to create the world’s biggest cement group, LafargeHolcim, reported Reuters. The all-share combination, which requires approval from regulators around the world, already has the green light from seven countries (Russia, Ukraine, Turkey, South Africa, Morocco, Kenya and Singapore), executives told reporters on a conference…

Argos has announced its financial results for the third quarter of 2014 (3Q14). Consolidated income showed an increase of 16 percent compared to the same period in 2013, with both cement and concrete sales volumes continuing their steady upward trend, with accumulated growth rates of 9 percent and 18 percent, respectively.

Designed to be both beneficial for the environment and profitable for business, Skyonic Corp. opened Capitol SkyMine, a commercial-scale carbon capture and utilization facility, on Oct. 21. Located at Capitol Aggregates’ San Antonio cement plant, the $125 million Capitol SkyMine will have a total carbon impact of 300,000 tons annually through the direct capture of 75,000 tons of CO2 and…

New York is joining Michigan and Ohio in criticizing a McInnis Cement plant subsidized by the province of Quebec for potentially violating fair trade standards, according to the Times Union.  

Holcim’s Ste. Genevieve, Mo., plant recently appointed three employees to leadership positions. Corey Green will be area leader for maintenance and reliability; Rodney Forester, operations leader; and Houston Meyer, raw mill area leader.

The Port of Long Beach released a draft environmental impact report (EIR) examining proposed modifications to the existing Mitsubishi Cement import facility on Pier F, according to media reports. To gather comments on the recirculated draft EIR, a public hearing is scheduled for Oct. 22 at Long Beach City Hall.  

Total shipments of portland and blended cement in the United States and Puerto Rico in July 2014 were 9.0 million metric tons (Mt), up by about 11 percent from the level in July 2013, according to the most recent USGS Mineral Industry Survey.

Measuring year-to-date cement shipments through July, the most recent month for which data is available, PCA Chief Economist and Group Vice President Ed Sullivan reiterates in his most recent economic forecast that the industry is on track to reach a previously projected 7.9 percent increase in 2014 powder consumption against 2013 figures.

Holcim Ltd has announced several senior management position changes, effective Oct. 1. Urs Bleisch, corporate functional manager, has been appointed to the Holcim Executive Committee. He will keep his current responsibilities for Holcim Technology Ltd, Holcim Group Services Ltd, and the project management office of the Holcim Leadership Journey. Alain Bourguignon, regional manager for the UK, U.S. and Canada, will…