24 January 2018

Thailand: SCG Cement’s sales revenue rose by 3% year-on-year to US$5.5bn in 2017. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 6% to US$705m. The cement producer reported that overall domestic Ordinary Portland Cement demand fell by 5% in 2017 due to a slow recovery in the private sector. Total domestic consumption of cement was around 37.5Mt 2017 and exports rose to 4Mt from 3.7Mt in 2016.

Vietnam: Thanh Thang Cement is spending US$35m to towards developing a third production line at its cement plant in Thanh Nghi, Ha Nam. The government has agreed the investment at the 2.3Mt/yr unit over the 2021 – 2025 period, according to the Đầu tư newspaper. A second production line at the site was inaugurated in July 2017.

India: Neeraj Akhoury, the managing director and chief executive officer of ACC Cement, says that a ban on imported petcoke to the National Capital Region will increase the cost of cement. Akhoury told the Business Standard newspaper that the cement producer would be able to cope with the restriction through the use of alternative fuels. The Environment Ministry put the ban into effect on 19 January 2018 to control air pollution. This follows a relaxation of a temporary ban on petcoke in December 2017 by the Supreme Court to the cement industry.

Nepal: The Department of Supply Management and Protection of Consumers Interest (DSMPCI) has ordered cement producers to reduce their prices within three days. Following a survey the DSMPCI found that the price of cement had risen by 10 – 16% in recent weeks despite input costs, such as raw materials and transportation costs, only growing by 7 – 9%, according to the Republica newspaper. The department has issued its directive via the Nepal Cement Manufacturers' Association.

Uzbekistan: Construction work has started on Popcement’s new grinding plant in the Pap district of Namangan region. The US$50m plant will have a production capacity of 0.5Mt/yr, according to Uzbekistan Daily. The project is expected to be completed in September 2018. It is a joint venture between Uzbek, Chinese and Saudi Arabian investors.

Tunisia: The National Chamber of Ceramics Manufacturers has expressed concern about the a shortage of white cement following the closure of the Société Tuniso-Andalouse de Ciment Blanc’s (SOTACIB) plant at Férien. The ceramics association has called for the government to speed up the import process, according to the L'economiste Maghrebin magazine. SOTACIB’s 0.65Mt/yr white cement plant closed on 19 January 2018 for a six-month period following a strike by workers in December 2017. Spain’s Cementos Molins is the majority shareholder in the company.

Somalia: Security contractors aboard the cement carrier NACC Valbella have repelled an attack by pirates off the coast of Somalia. According to the maritime security firm LSS-SAPU and the Maritime Executive, the ship was transiting 90nm south of Mukallah, Yemen when it was approached by a pirate mother ship. After lighting warnings flares the carrier exchanged gunfire with the pirates before they abandoned their attack and departed. The Valbella did not suffer material damage and no injuries were reported.

Argentina: Loma Negra is considering using two trailer trucks or b-trains. The study follows a government relaxation concerning their usage in January 2018, according to the El Cronista newspaper. The cement producer is looking at using the longer trucks for both input materials and cement shipments. Due to a strong market locally most of the company’s 5.5Mt/yr cement production capacity is sold domestically.