Concrete

Impact of the Gulf crisis

Published

6 months ago

May 15, 2026

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A panel of industry leaders convened on April 15 to assess the cascading impact of West Asia’s geopolitical turmoil on one of India’s most energy-intensive sectors.

The ongoing conflict in West Asia has sent shockwaves far beyond the region’s borders, landing squarely on the balance sheets of Indian cement manufacturers. Rising petcoke and coal prices, disrupted shipping lanes, and constrained raw material imports are compounding operational pressures at a time when the sector is simultaneously chasing eight per cent demand growth.
These contradictions formed the backdrop of a timely webinar titled Gulf Crisis: Building Resilience in the Cement Industry, moderated by Sudeshna Banerjee, Managing Director, PS Digitech HR India. The speakers for the panel were Ashwani Pahuja, CMD, NextCem Consulting; Dr V Ramchandra, President, Indian Concrete Institute; Kaushal Sampat, Founder, Rubix Data Sciences; and Khushbu Lakhotia, Director, India Ratings and Research.

Setting the stakes
Banerjee opened the discussion by framing the financial dimensions of the crisis with precision. “According to recent analysis by India Ratings and Research, Indian cement companies are likely to face rising input costs in Q1 FY2027, driven largely by the ongoing Gulf crisis,” she noted, adding that the industry was already absorbing “a double-digit increase in coal prices, even sharper increase in petcoke prices due to supply disruption from the Middle East, and an estimated cost increase of approximately 175 to200 per tonne.”
She identified the central challenge: “How do companies protect margins while dealing with volatile fuel costs and intense competition?”

The operational reality
Dr Ramchandra outlined the breadth of disruption with clinical detail. He flagged an often-overlooked input vulnerability — polypropylene. “PP availability in the market has come down to about 50 per cent compared to the pre-war situation,” he said, explaining that the same material competes across end-uses. “It is required for food grain packaging also. Obviously, government prioritises food grain packaging, and that adds to the problems faced by the cement industry.”
Beyond packaging, he highlighted the compounding effect on core raw materials. “Cement industry requires materials like high-grade limestone import, petcoke import, gypsum import and most of these are loaded from ports in the Gulf. That is significantly hampered and has also increased the price shocks.”
He further noted that input variability was destabilising clinker manufacturing: “When the input materials vary, that frequently changes the raw meal and impacts quality variations, increasing the operation and maintenance cost.”

Energy transition as strategic response
On energy diversification, Dr Ramchandra pointed to structural levers the industry must accelerate. “This will push the industries to develop alternative or renewable energy sources like electric and solar, and also develop less energy-intensive manufacturing processes.” He highlighted waste heat recovery systems (WHRS) as a significant existing capability, explaining the thermodynamic logic: “While making clinker, we take the heat up to 1,450 degrees and then bring it back to normal temperature that heat is absorbed and used to heat the next batch of raw materials.”
He also advocated for a shift in product mix as a demand-side energy strategy: “The more we try to make low-clinker cements instead of OPC, if we make more of PPC, composite cement
and slag cement that will also help in lowering
energy consumption.”

Fuel switching and inventory strategy
Pahuja opened with an immediate-term assurance before pivoting to structural reform. On petcoke availability, he noted that approximately 30 per cent of the petcoke consumed by Indian cement plants is typically sourced from Gulf nations, particularly Saudi Arabia. “Today there are sources available from distant places like the USA or Venezuela. It is already being sourced from these countries — the productions will not be hampered and supply shortages perhaps will not be there,” he said.
However, Pahuja was unambiguous about the need for longer-term insulation. He advocated shifting from just-in-time procurement to a just-in-case inventory model: “They have to maintain minimum 90 days of inventory for materials subject to such volatilities, including petcoke, gypsum, as well as packing materials.” He further flagged the untapped potential of alternative fuel resources (AFR), pointing to India’s 70 million tonnes of annual municipal solid waste as an underutilised energy feedstock, arguing that prolonged fossil fuel cost escalation could finally make AFR pre-processing commercially viable for the industry.
On the question of whether the disruption signals a temporary setback or a structural inflection point, Pahuja was measured: “Such shocks have already been there. Industry has been moving or switching from petcoke to coal or imported coal depending on price fluctuations — they have got plenty of experience.” Yet he added that the crisis presented a clear opportunity for long-term process diversification if companies chose to act on it.

Financial resilience and industry outlook
Lakhotia brought a credit perspective to the panel, reinforcing the near-term margin risk while contextualising the sector’s underlying strength. Her firm’s analysis, cited extensively by the moderator, pointed to Q1 FY2027 as a particularly pressure-intensive quarter as existing fuel inventories are depleted and spot procurement at elevated prices becomes unavoidable.

The data governance gap
Sampat brought a sharp analytical lens to what he described as a pre-existing organisational vulnerability. “We are living in a VUCA world — volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous — and that volatility is only increasing,” he said, anchoring the conversation in a broader pattern of successive global disruptions: COVID-19, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and now the Gulf crisis.
Sampat argued that the sector’s exposure to supply shocks is amplified by fragmented data infrastructure. “Data is very siloed. Yes, you have your ERPs, your control towers, but still data is siloed.” He cited a telling statistic: “If you look at any master database of customers or suppliers and start a deduplication effort, your starting point is between 30 and 35 per cent duplicates. Because it’s all manual.” His prescription was unambiguous: “Before we talk about data-driven insights and predictive analytics, let’s get our data in order through master data management.”
On the question of real-time intelligence adoption, he observed that larger cement companies have migrated to more integrated workflows, while mid-sized players remain behind. Cash flow, he noted, was an acutely live concern: “Logistics cycles are becoming longer — and there is real pressure on cash flow.”

EBITDA under the microscope
Lakhotia delivered the sharpest financial prognosis of the panel. With power and fuel accounting for nearly 30 per cent of total cement costs and freight a further 25–27 per cent, she described the sector’s exposure as structural: “Fuel sits at the very heart of the cost structure of cement companies.”
On the EBITDA impact of the current spike, her projections were precise: “We could see a net impact of `120–150 per tonne on the EBITDA of cement companies this year.” She noted that most players carried one to three months of fuel inventory, the buffer for which was already being drawn down. “The impact of higher fuel prices will start reflecting in profitability only from Q1 FY27 onwards.”
On pricing power, Lakhotia offered a historical reference point: during the Russia-Ukraine fuel spike in FY23, when petcoke touched $200–300 per tonne, the industry managed only a 6–7 per cent price hike — partial pass-through at best. With approximately 75 million tonnes of new capacity announced for FY27, the highest in a decade, and utilisation likely settling near 70 per cent, she cautioned against optimism: “Price hikes have been announced in April, but their sustainability remains the key question.”

Multi-fuel combustion and the AI imperative
Pahuja made a compelling case for rethinking combustion system design from first principles. He advocated for multi-channel, multi-fuel burners capable of firing petcoke, coal, lignite, liquid fuels and alternative fuels simultaneously — a flexibility that he argued eliminates dependence on any single fuel source. On chloride bypass systems, he cited direct results: “Plants are now able to use 30 to 35 per cent AFR, simply by installing one chloride bypass system.”
He added that AI-enabled combustion control was no longer optional at this scale: “We have to take the help of AI so that we can control the combustion conditions and give optimum burning conditions to maintain quality and also minimise heat consumption — such systems have been proven to reduce heat consumption by as much as 5 to 10 per cent.”
On logistics, he expounded: only 20–25 per cent of cement currently moves by rail and under five per cent by waterway, with road transport absorbing the balance. He argued for a reversal — with rail at over 50 per cent, waterways at 20–25 per cent, and road limited to last-mile delivery. He also flagged EV adoption for mining equipment and transport fleets as an essential hedge against diesel cost volatility.

The tier II fault line
Lakhotia laid out the asymmetric exposure facing smaller players with clinical precision. “Tier II cement players are clearly more vulnerable in this cost cycle — typically single-region players with relatively modest brands, essentially price takers.” She noted that FY26 EBITDA per tonne for tier II companies was likely to remain meaningfully below the five to six-year average, with balance sheet headroom and liquidity cushions already reduced.
She identified blended cement as the most immediately accessible cost lever, alongside green power sourcing via group captive or lease models that limit upfront CAPEX. On logistics, she pointed to lead distance optimisation and tighter working capital discipline as near-term stabilisers.
Sampat added a financing dimension often overlooked in operational discussions: “Innovation in financing is as important as innovation in manufacturing.” He highlighted trade finance and supply chain finance as tools to relieve immediate cash flow pressure — especially relevant as companies source petcoke from newer, geographically distant suppliers requiring advance payments. “Cement companies are national assets — please take advantage of trade finance to bring down financing costs and control margins while navigating this crisis.”

Closing prescriptions
When asked for their single most important recommendation, each panellist was direct. Sampat called for “proactive stress testing — building models that factor in varying inputs rapidly to give sensitivity analysis, as of yesterday.” Lakhotia was equally unambiguous: “Reduce external energy dependence — this has been the single biggest, consistently the biggest driver of EBITDA volatility over the last decade.” Dr Ramchandra echoed the imperative for local ecosystem development and greater analytics adoption, while Pahuja closed with a historical perspective: “Out of 120 years of cement industry’s existence, for 100 years we manufactured cement without petcoke. We can definitely live without it — the industry has the capacity.”
Banerjee drew the session to a close having navigated four distinct expert registers — operational, analytical, financial and strategic, with precision and economy, ensuring each line of enquiry yielded actionable insight without losing the thread of the broader crisis narrative.

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ABB Extends Drive Lifespan at ACC Cement Plant Without Production Shutdown

Published

2 days ago

November 12, 2026

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ABB reconditions 25 drives at ACC’s Jamul cement plant, avoiding 16 tonnes of CO₂ emissions while improving reliability through predictive maintenance.
Chhattisgarh

ABB has signed a multi-year Motion OneCare service agreement with ACC Limited, part of the Adani Group, to modernise ageing industrial drives at its Jamul cement plant in Chhattisgarh, improving operational reliability while avoiding approximately 16 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions without disrupting production.

Announced on 27 October 2026, the agreement combines scheduled drive reconditioning, digital condition monitoring and energy appraisals to extend equipment lifespan, improve plant uptime and optimise maintenance costs. The initiative marks a shift from conventional equipment replacement towards a more resource-efficient approach to industrial asset management.

The first phase, completed in April 2026, involved the on-site reconditioning of 25 ABB ACS800 variable speed drives without a major plant shutdown. By retaining the existing cabinets and restoring the drive modules rather than replacing entire panels, ABB helped ACC preserve capital investment, minimise material consumption and avoid approximately 16 tonnes of CO₂ emissions.

A second phase, covering an additional 25 ACS800 drive modules, is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2026. The programme is designed to improve long-term equipment reliability while allowing maintenance activities to be aligned with the plant’s operational schedules.

The ACS800 drives, installed at Jamul in 2010, had delivered more than a decade of near-continuous service in demanding cement manufacturing conditions. However, ageing electrical components and changing fault patterns had begun to affect their ability to meet the plant’s reliability requirements.

Rather than opting for complete equipment replacement, ACC engaged ABB’s certified engineers to conduct a comprehensive asset health assessment. The evaluation found that the existing cabinets and enclosures remained structurally sound, making targeted reconditioning a technically viable and cost-effective alternative to full replacement.

Drawing on nearly two decades of experience with ACC’s equipment and operating requirements, ABB developed a maintenance framework tailored to the plant’s shutdown windows, budget cycles and production priorities.

The Motion OneCare agreement incorporates planned equipment restoration, condition-based monitoring and energy assessments, enabling ACC to adopt a more systematic approach to maintaining critical electrical infrastructure.

As part of the programme, ACC has implemented ABB Ability™ Digital Powertrain Insights to monitor drive performance and identify emerging operational issues before they result in equipment failures.

The digital platform provides continuous visibility into parameters such as temperature, current, vibration and fault patterns. These insights allow maintenance teams to detect early signs of equipment deterioration, schedule interventions more effectively and reduce the likelihood of unexpected downtime.

Amit Gupta, Local Division Manager, Motion Services, ABB India, said: “We know what unchecked wear costs over time: a small inefficiency that eats away at ROI for years. At Jamul, the evidence pointed clearly to assets with productive life still in them.”

“Our job was to restore them properly and give the team the tools to stay ahead of the next problem. At ABB, we don’t just fix what fails. We want to protect what works.”

The initiative also demonstrates the growing relevance of circular economy principles in cement manufacturing, where extending the service life of existing industrial equipment can reduce capital expenditure, material consumption and the environmental impact associated with manufacturing replacement components.

According to ABB, drive reconditioning can reduce lifecycle emissions by 50 to 80 per cent compared with complete equipment replacement. By preserving functional components and restoring critical modules, the process helps retain the economic and material value of existing industrial assets.

The addition of energy appraisals in subsequent phases will further expand the programme beyond equipment restoration, enabling ACC to assess drive performance, identify energy-saving opportunities and improve operating efficiency.

For cement manufacturers, variable speed drives play an important role in controlling motors and optimising energy consumption across production processes. Maintaining their reliability and efficiency is essential for minimising operational disruptions and managing electricity costs.

Vinod Bahety, CEO – Cement Business, Adani Group, said: “Moving from reactive firefighting to a structured maintenance plan was exactly what this operation needed. That kind of peace of mind doesn’t come easily. It comes from a partner that understands how your business runs.”

“We didn’t need a full system overhaul; we needed expert support, actionable insights, and a plan we could execute around our schedule. That’s what we got.”

The project supports ACC’s broader strategy to improve manufacturing efficiency through digital transformation, preventive maintenance and sustainable asset management.

ACC, a subsidiary of Ambuja Cements and part of the Adani Group, operates 20 cement manufacturing facilities and 119 ready-mix concrete plants across India. The company has been advancing initiatives focused on renewable energy, circular economy practices and technology-driven operational improvements.

Alongside Ambuja Cements, ACC is part of a large-scale building materials business committed to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, with near-term and net-zero targets validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).

The Jamul initiative aligns with these sustainability objectives by demonstrating how equipment life extension and digital monitoring can contribute to resource efficiency without requiring large-scale replacement of existing infrastructure.

ABB, a global technology company specialising in electrification and automation, brings more than 140 years of industrial expertise and employs approximately 110,000 people worldwide. Its Motion Services business supports industrial customers through equipment maintenance, modernisation, digital monitoring and lifecycle management solutions.

The agreement also reflects a wider shift in industrial maintenance practices, with manufacturers increasingly adopting predictive technologies to improve equipment availability, manage costs and reduce unplanned shutdowns.

With 25 drives already reconditioned and another 25 scheduled for restoration, ABB’s collaboration with ACC illustrates how targeted modernisation, digital monitoring and circular maintenance practices can extend the operational life of critical equipment while supporting more efficient and sustainable cement production.

Concrete

ABB Drives Digital Transformation at TCI MAX Cement Plant in J&K

Published

2 days ago

November 12, 2026

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ABB deploys advanced process control at TCI MAX’s Srinagar cement plant to improve clinker quality, energy efficiency and sustainable manufacturing.

Kashmir

ABB has deployed its advanced process control technology at TCI MAX Cement’s Srinagar facility in Jammu and Kashmir, marking the region’s first reported implementation of advanced process control (APC) in cement manufacturing and strengthening efforts towards more efficient, digitally enabled production.

Announced on 5 November 2026, the deployment of ABB Ability™ Expert Optimizer at the facility, operated by Trumboo Industries Pvt. Ltd., aims to improve process stability, clinker quality, energy efficiency and overall plant productivity. The implementation forms part of TCI MAX’s strategy to modernise its manufacturing operations through automation and digital technologies.

Following the integration of ABB’s advanced process control solution and supporting IT infrastructure, TCI MAX has reported improvements in operational productivity, product quality and sustainability-related performance indicators. The technology focuses on optimising the cement pyro process, a critical stage of production involving high-temperature processing and clinker formation.

Waseem Ahmed Trumboo, Director, Trumboo Industries Pvt. Ltd., said: “Introducing advanced process control at TCI MAX is an important step in how we are evolving our operations. Our focus is on improving the stability and efficiency of our processes while maintaining consistent clinker quality. We have been encouraged by the performance of the solution during commissioning and by the support from the ABB team, and we look forward to realizing its full potential.”

ABB Ability™ Expert Optimizer combines advanced process control, model predictive control (MPC) and artificial intelligence (AI) to continuously monitor and optimise manufacturing operations. By analysing process conditions, predicting operational behaviour and automatically adjusting key parameters, the system enables more consistent production while reducing process variability.

In cement manufacturing, maintaining stable pyro-processing conditions is essential for achieving uniform clinker quality and optimising thermal energy consumption. Fluctuations in operating parameters can affect fuel efficiency, production output and product consistency.

The deployment is designed to address these challenges through real-time process optimisation, helping operators maintain more stable kiln operations while improving the utilisation of fuel, electricity and raw materials.

Kapil Agarwal, Senior Vice President and Local Division Manager, Process Industries Division, ABB India, said: “Cement producers are increasingly looking to adopt digital technologies to achieve greater consistency and efficiency while addressing their sustainability priorities. ABB Ability™ Expert Optimizer brings advanced process control and deep cement process expertise together to help operators make their processes more stable and efficient. We are pleased to support TCI MAX as it takes this important step in its digital transformation.”

The technology also supports sustainability objectives by optimising fuel consumption, improving electrical energy efficiency and minimising process waste. More stable operations can contribute to lower energy intensity and reduced emissions associated with cement production.

For TCI MAX, the investment represents a move towards data-driven manufacturing, where automated control systems complement operator expertise to improve production performance and operational reliability.

The implementation is particularly significant for Jammu and Kashmir’s cement industry, as it introduces advanced process optimisation technology to a regional manufacturing facility. Its deployment could demonstrate the potential for wider adoption of digital automation across cement plants seeking to modernise their operations.

The project builds on ABB’s experience in delivering advanced process control solutions to cement manufacturers worldwide. Through the integration of industrial automation, predictive technologies and process engineering expertise, the company supports manufacturers in improving resource efficiency and maintaining consistent production quality.

As cement producers face increasing pressure to manage energy costs, improve productivity and reduce their environmental footprint, technologies such as AI-enabled process control and predictive optimisation are becoming important components of plant modernisation strategies.

ABB’s Expert Optimizer provides a platform for addressing these priorities by enabling automated adjustments based on changing process conditions, reducing reliance on manual intervention and supporting more efficient plant operation.

ABB, a global technology company specialising in electrification and automation, has more than 140 years of industrial experience and approximately 110,000 employees worldwide. Its Automation business employs around 26,000 people and provides technologies and services across process, hybrid and maritime industries.

The TCI MAX deployment reinforces ABB’s growing role in the digital transformation of cement manufacturing in India, where improving process efficiency and reducing energy consumption remain critical to the industry’s long-term sustainability.

With the advanced process control system now implemented at its Srinagar facility, TCI MAX aims to build on the initial operational improvements and further optimise production efficiency, clinker consistency and environmental performance.

Concrete

Ramco Cements’ Hard Worker Wins Eight Awards at ‘Love of Advertising Awards 2026’

Published

2 days ago

November 12, 2026

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Ramco Cements’ Hard Worker brand wins eight awards for excellence in advertising, packaging and brand identity at the Love of Advertising Awards 2026.

Hyderabad

The Ramco Cements Limited’s construction chemicals brand, Hard Worker, has secured eight awards at the Love of Advertising Awards 2026, recognising its creative excellence across television, digital advertising, packaging design and brand identity.

Organised by the Advertising Club of Trivandrum, the awards were presented at a ceremony held at The Leela Raviz, Kovalam, on 24 October 2026. The recognition highlights Hard Worker’s integrated marketing strategy and its efforts to establish a distinctive presence in India’s competitive construction chemicals market.

The eight awards span multiple creative categories, reflecting the brand’s approach to combining product-focused communication with engaging storytelling, humour and innovative design. Through its campaigns, Hard Worker has sought to simplify technical product benefits and make construction chemicals more accessible and relatable to consumers and construction professionals.

Built around the philosophy of “Hard-working products for hardworking people”, the brand focuses on communicating practical product advantages through memorable advertising narratives while maintaining a consistent identity across different marketing platforms.

Its campaigns for Ramco Hard Worker Eco Plaster and Tile Fix have been central to this approach. The Eco Plaster campaign highlights water conservation through the product’s self-curing properties, positioning it as a solution that supports more efficient construction practices. Meanwhile, Tile Fix promotes specialised tile-fixing solutions by presenting their practical benefits through relatable situations and creative storytelling.

Beyond advertising, Hard Worker has invested in distinctive packaging and brand identity development to improve product recognition and maintain consistency across customer touchpoints. This integrated approach has helped the brand differentiate itself in a category where marketing communication has traditionally focused on technical specifications and functional performance.

A V Dharmakrishnan, CEO, Ramco Cements, said, “Winning eight awards at the Love of Advertising Awards is a proud moment for Ramco Cements and the Hard Worker team. We believe that building a strong brand requires not only quality products but also the ability to communicate their value in a compelling and differentiated manner. Hard Worker’s journey reflects our commitment to combining product performance with innovative marketing to create meaningful connections with our customers and strengthen our presence in the construction chemicals market.”

The recognition comes as building materials manufacturers increasingly focus on brand differentiation, product awareness and customer engagement to strengthen their position in the construction chemicals segment.

By using humour and storytelling to explain product applications and benefits, Hard Worker aims to bridge the communication gap between technical construction solutions and the practical requirements of contractors, applicators and end-users.

Balaji K. Moorthy, Executive Director – Marketing, Ramco Cements, said, “Hard Worker was conceived to bring a fresh perspective to the construction chemicals category, where product communication has traditionally been functional and technical. Our endeavour has been to break through the clutter with distinctive ideas, humour and storytelling, while keeping the product proposition at the heart of every campaign. The recognition across TV and digital advertising, packaging design and brand identity design demonstrates our integrated approach to building the brand. These eight awards are an encouraging recognition of the creative thinking and collaborative effort behind Hard Worker’s marketing initiatives.”

The awards add to Hard Worker’s growing portfolio of creative recognitions and reinforce Ramco Cements’ emphasis on integrating product innovation with strategic marketing.

The brand’s communication initiatives also reflect a wider shift in the construction materials industry, where manufacturers are increasingly adopting consumer-focused marketing strategies to improve product understanding and strengthen relationships with construction professionals.

With its portfolio of construction chemicals, Hard Worker aims to address evolving requirements for durability, application efficiency and construction quality. Its marketing efforts seek to complement these product attributes by building stronger awareness and encouraging the adoption of specialised construction solutions.

Ramco Cements, one of India’s established cement manufacturers, operates across cement and allied building solutions. Through Hard Worker, the company is expanding its presence in the construction chemicals segment with products designed to enhance performance, quality and durability in modern construction applications.

The latest recognition strengthens Hard Worker’s brand visibility and underscores the growing importance of creative communication in promoting technical building materials. Ramco Cements intends to continue combining product development with distinctive marketing initiatives to support the brand’s growth in India’s construction chemicals market.