Economy & Market

Supreme Court reserves order in Lafarge case

Published

15 years ago

May 31, 2011

admin

The Supreme Court has reserved its order over the contentious issue of resumption of mining operations by French cement giant, Lafarge, in Meghalaya to supply the limestone to its $255-million cement plant in Bangladesh. A special bench comprising Chief Justice SH Kapadia, Justice Aftab Alam and Justice KS Radhakrishnan concluded the hearing in the case. It heard the arguments on behalf of the Centre, the company Lafarge and local residents, Shella Action Committee. The Bench has also given the liberty to all the parties involved in the case to file additional written submissions by Friday. The judgement of the Bench will decide the fate of LUMPL, involved in extraction of limestone in Meghalaya which was used for manufacturing cement at the LSC project in Bangladesh. It is noteworthy to mention that LSC has been fully dependent on the supply of limestone from LUMPL for its operations. The operations by LUMPL and LSC were challenged by an application filed by Shella Action Committee, a registered voluntary agency of tribal people, alleging that Lafarge had obtained environmental clearance by misrepresenting to the Government of India, the land for mining which is 116 acres of thick forest land, to be a ‘wasteland and non-forest area consisting mainly of barren land, and rocks’. The court later restrained LUMPL from continuing limestone mining in the villages – Nongtrai and Shella in Meghalaya and supplying the same to the LSC project at Chhatak, Sunamganj, in Bangladesh. During the course of the hearing in the case, the court questioned Lafarge counsel and former attorney general Soli J Sorabjee. He said that the company was not aware of fact that project site falls within the forest area. To which the apex court firmly replied that the project was in the core of the tropical deciduous forest of that area.

Concrete

WCA Welcomes SiloConnect as associate corporate member

Published

9 hours ago

April 13, 2026

admin

The World Cement Association (WCA) has announced SiloConnect as its newest associate corporate member, expanding its network of technology providers supporting digitalisation in the cement industry. SiloConnect offers smart sensor technology that provides real-time visibility of cement inventory levels at customer silos, enabling producers to monitor stock remotely and plan deliveries more efficiently. The solution helps companies move from reactive to proactive logistics, improving delivery planning, operational efficiency and safety by reducing manual inspections. The technology is already used by major cement producers such as Holcim, Cemex and Heidelberg Materials and is deployed across more than 30 countries worldwide.

Concrete

TotalEnergies and Holcim Launch Floating Solar Plant in Belgium

Published

9 hours ago

April 13, 2026

admin

TotalEnergies and Holcim have commissioned a floating solar power plant in Obourg, Belgium, built on a rehabilitated former chalk quarry that has been converted into a lake. The project has a generation capacity of 31 MW and produces around 30 GWh of renewable electricity annually, which will be used to power Holcim’s nearby industrial operations. The project is currently the largest floating solar installation in Europe dedicated entirely to industrial self-consumption. To ensure minimal impact on the surrounding landscape, more than 700 metres of horizontal directional drilling were used to connect the solar installation to the electrical substation. The project reflects ongoing collaboration between the two companies to support industrial decarbonisation through renewable energy solutions and innovative infrastructure development.

Concrete

Cortec® Corporation applauded for its strong safety performance

Published

9 hours ago

April 13, 2026

admin

Cortec® Corporation has been recognised for its strong safety performance, receiving its sixth Governor’s Workplace Safety Award for its outstanding performance in 2025. As a Silver Achievement recipient, the company continues to maintain safety metrics well above national industry averages, an impressive accomplishment for a chemical manufacturing organisation. This achievement reflects Cortec’s proactive approach to workplace safety, focused on early hazard detection and employee involvement. The company will be formally recognised at the Minnesota Safety and Health Conference in May, highlighting how industrial companies are effectively strengthening workplace safety standards.