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Holcim Group to sell Ambuja Cement and ACC Ltd

The firm is planning to exit business in India after 17 years

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The Holcim Group, the largest cement producer worldwide, may exit India, placing its twin listed companies, the Ambuja Cements and ACC Ltd, for sale as part of a worldwide plan to focus on core markets.

JSW Steel India and Adani Group, among others, are considered to have undertaken early-stage talks with Holcim to explore their interest levels. Both are newcomers to the cement industry, but they have big plans to grow.

According to the sources, feelers have also been sent to regional cement companies like Shree Cement.

Global cement companies that have been eyeing India for some time are expected to be approached, as acquiring both Ambuja and ACC would propel any player to second place in the highly competitive, fragmented, and price-sensitive market, with a combined pan-India capacity of 66 million tonnes per annum.

Holcim, founded in Switzerland, merged with French competitor Lafarge in 2015 to become a global conglomerate.

Lafarge Holcim, a European cement and building materials giant was obliged to undergo various restructurings to comply with antitrust regulators throughout the world, including divesting properties in Europe and Asia, including India. Since then, the united company has been renamed Holcim Group.

The total market capitalisation of the two firms is Rs 1.14 lakh crore, with Ambuja alone valued at Rs 73,349 crore, making it one of India’s leading prospective mergers and acquisitions. Any merger would also result in an open offer in both for a 26% stake in the company.

Discussions between Holcim’s senior management and their peers at JSW and Adani have been continuing in India and Europe for some weeks and have gained traction in recent days.

Prospective suitors have approached global institutions to organise at least $5-7 billion in potential finance.

Holcim has highlighted speciality building solutions and high-end energy efficient renovations as a significant emphasis soon, as part of a global re-evaluation of its enormous portfolio that will result in old operations being divested.

It is part of the company’s strategic Strategy 2025 – Accelerating Green Growth initiative, which strives to find sustainable construction materials solutions. In comparison to ready-mix concrete, aggregates, roofing, and green construction solutions, cement’s importance in the whole group is dwindling.


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Also read: ACC Ltd net profit declines 40.55% to Rs 280.85 cr for Q4 FY22

Concrete

Molecor Renews OCS Europe Certification Across Spanish Plants

Certification reinforces commitment to preventing microplastic pollution

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Molecor has renewed its OCS Europe certification for another year across all its production facilities in Spain under the Operation Clean Sweep (OCS) voluntary initiative, reaffirming its commitment to sustainability and environmental protection. The renewal underlines the company’s continued focus on preventing the unintentional release of plastic particles during manufacturing, with particular attention to safeguarding marine ecosystems from microplastic pollution.

All Molecor plants in Spain have been compliant with OCS Europe standards for several years, implementing best practices designed to avoid pellet loss and the release of plastic particles during the production of PVC pipes and fittings. The OCS-based management system enables the company to maintain strict operational controls while aligning with evolving regulatory expectations on microplastic prevention.

The renewed certification also positions Molecor ahead of newly published European regulations. The company’s practices are aligned with Regulation (EU) 2025/2365, recently adopted by the European Parliament, which sets out requirements to prevent pellet loss and reduce microplastic pollution across industrial operations.

Extending its sustainability commitment beyond its own operations, Molecor is actively engaging its wider value chain by informing suppliers and customers of its participation in the OCS programme and encouraging responsible microplastic management practices. Through these efforts, the company contributes directly to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 14 ‘Life below water’, reinforcing its role as a responsible industrial manufacturer committed to environmental stewardship and long-term sustainability.

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Concrete

Coforge Launches AI-Led Data Cosmos Analytics Platform

New cloud-native platform targets enterprise data modernisation and GenAI adoption

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Coforge Limited has recently announced the launch of Coforge Data Cosmos, an AI-enabled, cloud-native data engineering and advanced analytics platform aimed at helping enterprises convert fragmented data environments into intelligent, high-performance data ecosystems. The platform strengthens Coforge’s technology stack by introducing a foundational innovation layer that supports cloud-native, domain-specific solutions built on reusable blueprints, proprietary IP, accelerators, agentic components and industry-aligned capabilities.

Data Cosmos is designed to address persistent enterprise challenges such as data fragmentation, legacy modernisation, high operational costs, limited self-service analytics, lack of unified governance and the complexity of GenAI adoption. The platform is structured around five technology portfolios—Supernova, Nebula, Hypernova, Pulsar and Quasar—covering the full data transformation lifecycle, from legacy-to-cloud migration and governance to cloud-native data platforms, autonomous DataOps and scaled GenAI orchestration.

To accelerate speed-to-value, Coforge has introduced the Data Cosmos Toolkit, comprising over 55 IPs and accelerators and 38 AI agents powered by the Data Cosmos Engine. The platform also enables Galaxy solutions, which combine industry-specific data models with the core technology stack to deliver tailored solutions across sectors including BFS, insurance, travel, transportation and hospitality, healthcare, public sector and retail.

“With Data Cosmos, we are setting a new benchmark for how enterprises convert data complexity into competitive advantage,” said Deepak Manjarekar, Global Head – Data HBU, Coforge. “Our objective is to provide clients with a fast, adaptive and AI-ready data foundation from day one.”

Supported by a strong ecosystem of cloud and technology partners, Data Cosmos operates across multi-cloud and hybrid environments and is already being deployed in large-scale transformation programmes for global clients.

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Concrete

India, Sweden Launch Seven Low-Carbon Steel, Cement Projects

Joint studies to cut industrial emissions under LeadIT

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India and Sweden have announced seven joint projects aimed at reducing carbon emissions in the steel and cement sectors, with funding support from India’s Department of Science and Technology and the Swedish Energy Agency.

The initiatives, launched under the LeadIT Industry Transition Partnership, bring together major Indian companies including Tata Steel, JK Cement, Ambuja Cements, Jindal Steel and Power, and Prism Johnson, alongside Swedish technology firms such as Cemvision, Kanthal and Swerim. Leading Indian academic institutions, including IIT Bombay, IIT-ISM Dhanbad, IIT Bhubaneswar and IIT Hyderabad, are also participating.

The projects will undertake pre-pilot feasibility studies on a range of low-carbon technologies. These include the use of hydrogen in steel rotary kilns, recycling steel slag for green cement production, and applying artificial intelligence to optimise concrete mix designs. Other studies will explore converting blast furnace carbon dioxide into carbon monoxide for reuse and assessing electric heating solutions for steelmaking.

India’s steel sector currently accounts for about 10–12 per cent of the country’s carbon emissions, while cement contributes nearly 6 per cent. Globally, heavy industry is responsible for roughly one-quarter of greenhouse gas emissions and consumes around one-third of total energy.

The collaboration aims to develop scalable, low-carbon industrial technologies that can support India’s net-zero emissions target by 2070. As part of the programme, Tata Steel and Cemvision will examine methods to convert steel slag into construction materials, creating a circular value chain for industrial byproducts.

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