Cementos Argos and Grupo Calidra Jointly Form Lime Production Company Caltek

Colombian cement maker Cementos Argos and Mexican building materials producer Grupo Calidra have aligned to jointly form Caltek, a new company focused on the production of lime and related compounds.

Following an initial investment of nearly $40 million USD (113 billion Colombian pesos), the flagship Caltek plant will be located in Puerto Triunfo in the Colombian department of Antioquia. According to Argos, each year it will be capable of producing up to 90,000 tons of the chemical compound used widely in construction and engineering works.

Cementos Argos and Grupo Calidra, which have named Álvaro Caicedo as general manager of Caltek, stated that this will be the only facility in the country able to create such quantities of pulverized lime, a versatile calcium-containing compound that can be used in plaster, asphalt, paint, medicines, water treatment, and mineral refining.

Lucas Moreno, vice president of innovation at Argos, highlighted the move as a sign of the Colombian company continuing to look for new markets and innovation.

“We have defined the development of new businesses as a fundamental axis of growth and profitability,” said Moreno. “We are proud to bring quality and innovation to the lime market in Colombia.”

(Photo credit: Cementos Argos)