Layoffs, a New Terminal, and Why We're Still Appealing
What we know
On Sept. 22, CEMEX sent layoff notices to Lyons plant employees, with jobs ending Nov. 21. The number of people affected hasn't been made public. CEMEX's official statement says it is "rebalancing staffing levels" this fall and that cement sales and distribution will continue at the site. It doesn't say whether the kiln, the equipment that actually makes cement, will keep running.
A few other facts stand out:
CEMEX has a new cement terminal in Bennett, Colorado, which appears to have received its occupancy permit about a week before the Lyons layoffs were announced.
This spring, CEMEX restarted rail-unloading equipment at Lyons that, according to state records, hadn't been used since 2007.
A regional competitor is expanding cement production and building new Front Range terminals, with added supply likely to reach our market in force in mid-2027.
Boulder County is separately negotiating to acquire the nearby Dowe Flats property now that reclamation there is largely complete, so the County and CEMEX have more than one thing on the table.
Federal mine safety records show that a July inspection at the plant produced 31 citations, including the first "unwarrantable failure" citation there since 2012. The penalties are still proposed. The records are public through the Mine Safety and Health Administration (mine ID 0500344).
A cement terminal doesn't need a kiln. It receives finished cement by rail and ships it out by truck. That's why the gap between "sales and distribution will continue" and silence about the kiln is worth noting.
What we don't know
We don't know whether this is a lasting shift to a terminal model, a bridge to closing, a negotiating position with the County, or some mix of all three. We don't know whether the kiln will keep running or, if it stops, what that triggers under state and county rules. We also don't know what happens to the roughly 1,000 acres the plant sits on.
Reclamation also remains a large, unfunded question. The state has raised CEMEX's reclamation bond, but we believe the true cost of cleanup could be several times higher.
Why we're still appealing
The appeal is tied to a specific window of time. The County's decision rested on a set of facts that the record contradicts, and we have a limited period to challenge it. If we drop the appeal, we lose the option to fight that decision, and if CEMEX changes course and ramps operations back up, we'd have no recourse.
We don't have confirmed facts yet, only data points, and we'd rather wait for facts than guess. In the meantime, the appeal is how we preserve our rights and our options. The hearing is currently set for November 4. We've asked to postpone it, but we haven't heard whether that will be granted.
We'll share more as we learn it. Join our mailing list to get updates directly.
Want to dig a little deeper? We’ve made all of our research (all the permits, studies, and county records) open-sourced and public here: https://github.com/lorangb/cemex-nonconforming
Point your favorite AI tool at the repo and interrogate the facts yourself.
