Ceramic and glass business news of the week for September 2, 2024

PLANTS, CENTERS, AND FACILITIES

Huge EV battery recycling facility comes online in Ohio

Cirba Solutions opened its expanded battery recycling plant in Lancaster, Ohio, making it the first project of any kind to come online after receiving funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The $400 million expansion project includes two new processing lines that can together produce 15,000 tons annually of ​“black mass” from batteries.

Decades-old Ohio steel research facility repurposed to house refractory company

A decades-old steel research facility purchased by the city of Middletown, Ohio, in 2021 is on track to be the new home of refractory ceramic manufacturer EI Ceramics. EI Ceramics officials approached the city in 2023 concerning the purchase of the 9.5-acre property, which they plan to remediate and remodel with an investment of several million dollars.

Heidelberg Materials secures funding for Indiana cement plant decarbonization project

Heidelberg Materials North America received $300,000 from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations to begin the first phase of its decarbonization project at the Mitchell cement plant in Indiana. This project is part of a broader initiative of up to $500 million in DOE funding to support full-scale carbon capture, transport, and storage.

Brazil’s CPFL Energia to install green H2 pilot for cement production

Brazilian energy company CPFL Energia announced that it is planning a green hydrogen pilot project in the state of Rio Grande do Norte in partnership with cement producer Mizu Cimentos. Scheduled to commence operations in 2027, the planned green hydrogen production facility will feed its output to Mizu Cimentos’ factory in Barauna municipality.

ACWA Power signs agreement for Indonesia’s first floating photovoltaic project

ACWA Power signed a power purchase agreement with Indonesian state-owned company PT Perusahaan Listrik Negara for its inaugural floating photovoltaic project in the country. The Saguling project will have a capacity of 60 megawatts.

ACQUISITIONS AND COLLABORATIONS

Micron to acquire AUO plants in Taiwan for high-bandwidth memory expansion

Taiwanese panel maker AUO announced that it will sell three idled manufacturing facilities to memory manufacturer Micron. By acquiring the facilities, Micron plans to further expand its dynamic random-access memory business in Taiwan, with expectations to develop high-bandwidth memory for artificial intelligence applications.

Arafura, SRC join forces to bolster rare earth supply chain

Arafura Rare Earths Limited and the Saskatchewan Research Council signed a memorandum of understanding to collaborate on the global diversification of the magnet value supply chain, bringing together capabilities and interests in processing and supply of rare earths elements.

Kazakhstan and Tajikistan agree to cooperate on uranium mining

Kazakhstan-based National Atomic Company Kazatomprom and Tajikistan Rare Metals (TajRedMet) signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at developing cooperation in the extraction and processing of uranium, as well as rare and rare earth metals.

Workwell Industries and O-I Glass to launch glass recycling program

On Aug. 28, 2024, local officials and leadership from O-I Glass Inc. and multiple distilleries in Louisville celebrated the launch of Kentucky’s first dedicated glass recycling program. The $350,000 glass processing initiative is a collaborative partnership between O-I Glass, Workwell Industries, and multiple Kentucky distillers.

OTHER STORIES

Ceramic makers in Indonesia protest cut in subsidized gas quota

The Indonesian Ceramic Industry Association expressed its concern over rising production costs due to a reduction in the subsidized gas allocation for the sector, saying the policy forced producers to obtain additional gas at costly market prices to ensure they had sufficient supply.

Fortera secures $85M for deployment of low-carbon cement production

Advanced materials manufacturer Fortera secured $85 million in Series C funding to scale deployment of its low-carbon cement technology that integrates with existing infrastructure. Fortera is now positioned to establish additional plants that will produce ReAct green cement, which reportedly has 70% less CO₂ per ton than ordinary cement.

Venture Minerals to rename amidst Jupiter acquisition

Venture Minerals revealed it will change its company name to Critica Limited amid completing the acquisition of the Jupiter Project in Western Australia.

MARKET TRENDS

Doubling of publicly available electric vehicle chargers since start of Biden–Harris Admin

Since the start of the Biden-Harris Administration, the number of publicly available electric vehicle chargers has doubled. Now, there are more than 192,000 publicly available charging ports with approximately 1,000 new public chargers being added each week.

Small-to-medium scale industries drive growth of India’s natural gas consumption

According to the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, small-to-medium scale industries in India now are the second largest consumers of natural gas in the country, behind only the fertilizer sector. These industries took advantage of current low prices, but such fuels carry the risks of price volatility and import dependence.