26 July 2017
Loesche supplies mill to Hub plant 26 July 2017
Pakistan: Loesche has provided an LM 56.3+3 CS vertical roller mill for cement grinding to Attock Cement Pakistan Ltd (ACPL). The new mill will be used in the new line three of the cement plant in Hub Chowki in Pakistan, in the Lasbela/Baluchistan district, 20km north of Karachi. The mills will grind OPC cement with a fineness of 3300 Blaine at a capacity of 200t/hr or 2800 Blaine at a capacity of 240t/hr.
Alongside the delivery of the mill, the Loesche mandate also includes the monitoring and assembly as well as the commissioning, which is due to take place in mid-2017. The Chinese company Hefei Cement Research & Design Institute, with which Loesche has successfully delivered mills on a regular basis, will act as Loesche’s contractor and will assume overall responsibility for the new cement line.
LafargeHolcim beats expectations so far in 2017 26 July 2017
Switzerland: LafargeHolcim has released its results for the second quarter and first half of 2017. Its net sales were up by 3.6% on a like-for-like basis in the quarter and its operating earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 10.1% on a like-for-like basis, driven by pricing, cost discipline and synergies.
During the second quarter the group saw net sales of Euro6.16bn and an operating EBITDA of Euro1.6bn. Its net income rose to Euro707.6m, a rise of 38% from the same period in 2016 when it made Euro512.2m.
In the first half of 2017 LafargeHolcim’s net sales were Euro11.2bn, a 4.4% like-for-like improvement compared to the first half of 2016. Its operating EBITDA was Euro2.28bn and its recurring net income was Euro611.9m, a rise of 39% compared to Euro440.3m.
Beat Hess, Chairman and interim CEO said, "LafargeHolcim delivered positive earnings growth for the fifth consecutive quarter supported by favourable pricing, cost discipline and synergies. The unique strengths of our balanced portfolio are once again evident in our results with key countries such as the US, India, Nigeria and, notably this quarter, Mexico making significant contributions to earnings, more than offsetting headwinds in some of our markets. On that basis, and with our performance to date, we remain confident that we will achieve our full year guidance and our 2018 targets.”
Iraq slaps 45% tariff on Iranian cement 26 July 2017
Iran/Iraq: Iraq has imposed a 45% tariff on cement import from Iran, according to the head of non-metal mine products and the Department of Ministry of Industries and Business in Iran. Seifollah Amiri of the Tehran Chamber of Commerce said, “Currently, only exporting clinker to Iraq is possible.”
Iran exported 12Mt of cement worth US$695m in the Iranian fiscal year that ran to 19 March 2017. Iraq took US$441m worth of material. Assuming that all exports are the same price per tonne, this equates to around 7.6Mt of cement.