Argentina: Geocycle is working to double the municipal solid waste (MSW) processing capacity of its facility in Yocsina, close to Córdoba, from 50,000t/yr to 100,000t/yr. The subsidiary of Holcim receives waste from surrounding settlements like Piedra Blanca and Villa Carlos Paz. So far in 2023, Holcim Argentina's cement plant kilns are using an average of 13% refuse-derived fuel (RDF), almost twice as much as in 2022.. The company is committed to raising the percentage to 46% by 2026.

"With this station, we are moving forward with more solutions to accompany our clients and strategic partners in meeting their sustainability and circular economy objectives, innovating in the integrated management of waste, recovering it and reinserting it into a new industry that, through our processes, will become part of a new product," commented Christian Dedeu, chief executive officer of Holcim in Argentina.

UK: Geminor opened a new waste processing facility in Hull on 25 April 2023 in the presence of close to 100 guests. Kalvin Neal, the Deputy Lord Mayor of Kingston upon Hull, and Geminor chief executive officer Kjetil Vikingstad jointly cut the ribbon at the new HUB site, which can produce 150,000t/yr of refuse-derived fuel (RDF). Following the ceremony, guests were taken on a tour of the 11,000m² that was built by engineering company Keltbray. The unit in East Yorkshire had an investment of Euro11.3m. Most of the HUB facility will be used to service Geminor’s existing 68,000t/yr waste processing contract with Hull City Council, which currently runs to 2030.

The HUB site is equipped with the latest industry requirements and technology, such as an Exeons Odour Abatement system and a Helios Fire Suppression system, alongside plant vs people proximity sensors to ensure safety.

David Singh, the project manager for the Hull processing facility at Geminor UK, said "The journey has been incredible, from the point of sourcing land back in 2018 and all the way up to the opening ceremony. Brexit, Covid-19, and the somewhat significant weather conditions sometimes caused challenges, but not more than we could handle. We are well underway in commissioning the facility and look forward to operating in May 2023.”

Lithuania: Arturas Zaremba, the head of Akmenes Cementas, has warned that government proposals to increase the import tax on coal in 2024 and the abolition of subsidies for the fuel will affect the company. The country’s parliament is also proposing scaling the import tax based on a CO2 scale, according to the Baltic Business Daily newspaper. Zaremba said that the cement producer uses 130,000t/yr of coal. However, it is currently investing Euro22m on an upgrade to its Akmenes integrated plant to allow it to switch to using a higher proportion of solid-recovered fuel. It currently has a 10% alternative fuels substitution rate using dried sewage sludge and tyres.

Zaremba said "There will be some impact because we will still have some of that coal left, but not as much as we would have had without the investment. I have not followed how much they plan to increase the excise duty, but we need to look into how much that would be in the financial terms. Any increase has an impact."

Ethiopia: East Africa Holding (EAH) has set up a subsidiary, Pan Afric Energy, to pilot using the prosopis juliflora shrub as a biomass alternative fuel at its integrated Dire Dewa plant operated by its National Cement subsidiary. The US$50m project testing using the invasive species is backed for a number of different partners, including the local government and the European Union, according to the Capital newspaper. So far the initiative has reached a 5% thermal substitution rate at the Dire Dewa plant. The project is also considering using the shrub as an alternative fuel at a new cement plant being built at Lemi town, in the North Shoa zone of Amhara region. EAH has formed a joint-venture with China-based West China International Holding to build the new plant.