Displaying items by tag: Pakistan
Global coal prices pile pressure on Pakistan’s cement producers
21 November 2017Pakistan: Rising coal prices are presenting a risk to the profit margins of cement manufactures in Pakistan. It is expected that this sustained rise in coal prices will increase the cost of cement production in the short-term.
Major contributory factors to the higher coal prices include China’s imposition to cut production to 276 days to reduce the supply glut since October 2016, while extra safety checks are resulting in tightened domestic coal supplies in the country. Moreover, tropical storms in the Atlantic basin and floods in Australia and Indonesia are giving rise to logistical issues with coal supply. Nuclear outages in France are driving extra competition for coal.
To add to the already worsened supply situation, South Africa`s National Union of Mine workers (NUM), which represents 70% of employees in the coal mining sector, started a strike on 19 November 2017 over unresolved wage disputes.
Pioneer Cement signs deal to buy Galadari Cement
06 October 2017Pakistan: Pioneer Cement has signed a memorandum of understanding to buy Galadari Cement (Gulf). Galadari Cement has been building its plant at Hub Choki in Balochistan since 1998, according to the News International newspaper. The unit is 50% complete. No amount for the sale has been disclosed but it is estimated to be around US$66m.
Pakistan cement sales rise in first quarter but exports down
05 October 2017Pakistan: Cement sales rose by 15% year-on-year to 10.3Mt in the first quarter of the local financial year that ended in September 2017 from 9Mt in the same period in 2016. However, the export part of this figure fell by 16.7% to 1.29Mt, according to the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA). Exports fell faster in the south of the country, where the country’s ports are based, with a significant drop in seaborne trade.
“Robust construction activities within the country are supporting the cement sector, but it is still sitting on some idle capacity that could be exported through government facilitations like sharing the transport cost,” said the APCMA to the Nation newspaper. It added that the government should cut duties on cement to encourage the residential sector.
Rohri Cement plant deaths rise to seven
03 October 2017Pakistan: The number of fatalities from an explosion at the Rohri Cement Plant in mid-September 2017 has risen to seven, following the death of journalist Lal Bux Kandhro. Four people died in the initial blast whilst defusing explosives, according to the Dawn newspaper. Seven other people were severely injured in the incident, of which three have subsequently died including Kandhro.
Cherat Cement orders engines from Wärtsilä
25 September 2017Pakistan: Cherat Cement has contracted Finland’s Wärtsilä to increase its power output at its Nowshera plant. It has ordered three Wärtsilä 34DF dual-fuel engines capable of operating on both natural gas and heavy fuel oil (HFO). The total electrical output will be approximately 29MW. Wärtsilä will also provide advisors to oversee the installation and commissioning of the engines.
“We need to enlarge our facilities and this we must to do quickly on a tight schedule. Wärtsilä has supported this timetable by agreeing to deliver their generating sets on a very short timetable…” said Azam Faruque, chief executive officer of Cherat Cement. The Nowshera cement plant is also powered by Wärtsilä equipment, consisting of four Wärtsilä 32 engines.
The new generators are scheduled for delivery in March 2018 and the plant is expected to be fully operational by June 2018.
DG Khan Cement’s annual profit falls by 6.3% to US$74.5m
21 September 2017Pakistan: DG Khan Cement’s profit after taxation has fallen by 6.3% year-on-year to US$74.5m in the financial year that ended on 30 June 2017 from US$79.5m in the same period in 2016. It blamed the decline on its expensive coal inventory, higher power costs and low prices, according to the News International newspaper. Despite this its sales revenue rose slightly to US$308m.
Four killed in explosion at Rohri Cement plant
20 September 2017Pakistan: At least four people have been killed at the Rohri Cement plant in Sindh whilst deactivating explosives. The fatalities included two law enforcement officers, a member of the bomb disposal squad and a worker, according to the Express Tribune newspaper. At least eight other people were also injured in the blast.
The police say that the victims were attempting to defuse around 2000kg of explosive material when it detonated accidentally. The explosives, designated for use in the plant’s quarry, had been dumped near the plant by its previous management.
Loesche announces four mill contract with Pioneer Cement
31 August 2017Pakistan: Germany’s Loesche has been awarded a contract for four vertical roller mills by China’s Chengdu Design & Research Institute for
Pakistan’s Pioneer Cement, which is expanding its production capacity to 8000t/day in the Chenki/Khusab district in Punjab Province. The contract includes a 630t/hr Loesche mill for grinding raw meal, two Loesche finish mills, each with a capacity of 235t/hr and a 60t/hr Loesche coal mill.
Loesche Dynamic Classifiers will be used to ensure the appropriate fineness. The patented Vortex Rectifier and an optimised flow characteristic produce significantly lower energy consumption and therefore lower operating costs.
Efficient dedusting of the raw material mill is carried out using two HURRICLON® systems from Loesche’s A TEC subsidiary. This gives the advantage of reducing the total energy requirement of the plant due to the low pressure loss and high degree of separation. It also creates savings in steel construction and installation due to the significantly lower weight compared to conventional cyclone technology.
Delivery is due by the autumn of 2018.
Thatta Cement grows sales in current financial year
22 August 2017Pakistan: Thatta Cement’s sales revenue rose by 34% to US$36.3m in its financial year that ended on 30 June 2017, from US$27.1m in the same period in 2016. Its profit increased by 8.7% to US$6.8m from US$6.3m.
Record July for Pakistan
07 August 2017Pakistan: The cement sector in Pakistan recorded an all-time high single month sales in July 2017 as the commodity's sales and exports grew by 44% year-on-year to 3.38Mt. The All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA) said that sales and exports were 2.33Mt in July 2016. Domestic sales rose by 55% to 2.91Mt, while exports remained flat at 0.48Mt.
“The dispatch figures for July 2017 are most encouraging,” said an APCMA spokesman. “The industry has established a record for this month. Never before has the sector crossed the dispatch limit of 3Mt in July.” The spokesman added that the turnaround after a dismal performance in June 2017 had taken the industry by surprise and that the sharp increase in dispatches in July rekindled hopes for growth. “The dispatches were achieved despite political turmoil in the country and unprecedented rains throughout the country. This depicts the maturity of the construction sector in the country,” he said.
Exports to Afghanistan during the month increased by 40.3% year-on-year to 210,000t but this was off-set by a large fall in exports to India and elsewhere. Sales to India fell by 11.6% to 122,000t and to other countries sales fell by 19.0% to 144,000t.