Project to build nation's largest cement plant in jeopardy

STE. GENEVIEVE, Mo. -- A plan by Holcim to build a huge cement plant on a site 40 miles south of St. Louis might not move forward after delays in gaining permits led to rising costs for energy and building materials, a company spokeswoman said.

The $600 million plant was proposed in 2000, to be built on nearly 4,000 acres of land next to the Mississippi River in Ste. Genevieve County.

Holcim, the U.S. unit of Switzerland-based Holcim AG, is studying how much the plant would now cost to build and is looking at whether the project will continue, said spokeswoman Nancy Tully. If construction moves forward, the plant would be the largest in the nation, producing 4 million metric tons of cement annually.

"Due to delays in permitting, costs have gone up," Tully told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. "We needed to ascertain if this project is still feasible. It is important to make sure that the need is still there and that it is cost-effective."

A decision is expected later this year.

Holcim officials said the desire to build the Missouri plant remains. The plant is expected to employ about 1,200 workers at the peak of construction and provide about 200 jobs after completion, Tully said.

The project includes some land in Jefferson County, but no development in that county. Even so, Jefferson County Commissioner Pat Lamping said the region will feel the effects if the plan for the plant is cut back or eliminated.

"From a regional perspective, the reduction of jobs certainly will have an impact," Lamping said.

Holcim, which operates a smaller plant in Clarksville, originally was supposed to begin operation at the Ste. Genevieve County plant last year.

The start of construction was delayed for years because of lawsuits from environmentalists over concerns about air pollution, mining and damage to wetlands. The company received an air permit from the state of Missouri a year ago, and settled the lawsuits in October for $3 million.

If Holcim moves ahead with the Ste. Genevieve County plant, some site preparation could start this year and construction possibly beginning next year. It would take three years to complete, Tully said.