India: The state government of Haryana has ordered that ready-mix concrete batching plants continuing to operate despite closure orders be cut off from the power grid. The Hindustan Times has reported that ‘several’ such plants are suspected of continuing their operations in secret in Gurugram.
Australia: Adbri has entered an agreement to acquire ready-mix concrete producer Premix Concrete. The Salisbury, South Australia-based business operates four ready-mix concrete plants, a sand and gravel processing plant and quarries at Penrice and Yorke.
The Advertiser newspaper has reported that Adbri operates 12 ready-mix concrete plants and two aggregates quarries, both on the Yorke Peninsula.
Adbri is already awaiting the findings of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission on a previous bid for fellow building materials producer BGC Group, due on 25 July 2025.
Mexico: Holcim Mexico plans to install 27 silos for use in the distribution of reduced-CO2 concrete at its concrete plants across Mexico. The company says that the silos have a combined capacity of 2600t. Holcim Mexico’s total investment in the project is US$3m.
US: A court has dismissed a nationwide antitrust lawsuit against six companies accused of conspiring to fix the price of concrete additives since 2017. Reuters has reported that the court found that price hikes, though ‘extreme and consistent,’ were not consistent with coordinated activity.
Defendants BASF, Cinven Group, Mapei, RPM, Saint-Gobain and Sika control 80-90% of the US$3bn US concrete additives market. The judge said the purchasers can try to replead most claims.
The European Commission previously conducted surprise inspections at ‘several’ construction chemicals producers in October 2023. A US probe followed in May 2024.
