Cemex announces £16m investment for Dove Holes Quarry
Cemex has announced a £16 million investment at its Dove Holes Quarry - one of the UK's most strategically important limestone operations.
The project, currently the largest capital expenditure investment being delivered by Cemex across the Europe Middle East and Africa region, demonstrates the company's long-term commitment to the UK construction sector and will help secure the future of the quarry for decades to come.
Lex Hunter Russell, Managing Director UK Materials, said: “This project represents a significant investment in Cemex UK’s operations and demonstrates our confidence in the growth of the UK construction industry.
“It will enable Dove Holes to operate more efficiently, maximise the use of its extensive mineral reserves and secure the future of this strategically important quarry for generations to come.”
The investment will fund the construction of a state-of-the-art filtration facility, supplied by Diemme Filtration, which will transform how quarry fines are managed on site.
The facility is expected to be operational by August 2027.
During the aggregate production process, limestone is washed before being processed, with water containing silts and fine limestone particles pumped into a lagoon where the material settles out before the water is reused.
However, available lagoon capacity is becoming increasingly limited and creating additional lagoon space would require the sterilisation of valuable limestone reserves.
The new filtration technology, based on plate filter presses supplied by Diemme Filtration, will remove silts from the washed slurry, producing clean water that can be recirculated back into the washing process while converting the remaining material into solid filter cakes.
These can be safely stored away from the excavation area and sold or re-used as a valuable by-product.
The project will play a vital role in unlocking future reserves at Dove Holes.
The quarry currently holds approximately 200 million tonnes of limestone reserves. By removing the need for additional lagoon space, the investment will unlock access to a further 125 million tonnes of aggregate, significantly extending the operational life of the site and helping to meet future demand for construction materials.
Once completed, the facility will improve operational efficiency, maximise water reuse and unlock access to significant additional reserves, ensuring Dove Holes continues to provide essential materials for UK homes, infrastructure and UK economic growth.