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Cement industry witnesses surge of Rs 45-50 per bag in April

Cement demand might rise to 10-12% in coming months in FY23

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With rising input costs, fluctuating imported coal prices and crude, and expectations of improving demand, the cement industry witnessed a price hike in April by Rs 45-50 per bag, which was a 12% month-on-month (MoM) hike.

It is among the steepest hike in cement prices since January. In north India, the price hike was over Rs 50 per bag, 14% MoM.

Southern Indian markets witnessed about an 8-10% hike in April, at about Rs 30 per bag. Prices are around Rs 392 -400 per bag, up from the March price of Rs 362?370 per bag.

In the western part, cement prices rose by Rs 45-50 per bag, around 12% MoM, to Rs 423 per bag.

In central India, the hike was about 11% MoM, up by around Rs 40 per bag to Rs 421 per bag in April.

The eastern market witnessed a price hike of 13-14% MoM, at Rs 384 per bag.

According to IDBI Capital, the price hike resulted in weaker demand, but demand might rebound in the coming months. The cement demand might increase to 10-12% in FY23.

The increased input cost has led to an increase in the production cost by at least Rs 60-70 per bag.

The average imported coal price has remained volatile, as it has again increased above $300 per tonne.

According to analysts, the impact of the rise in coal and petcoke prices will have a lag effect, and it will reflect in the coming quarters.

ACC Cement, which declared results for the January-March quarter, witnessed the input cost pressure take a toll on its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) margin. The margin shrunk over 600 basis points year-on-year (YoY). Its EBITDA margin was at 14.3%, lower than 20%. However, its blended EBITDA was down by 24% YoY.


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Also read: Cement prices shows an uptick in March as demand grows

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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