10 September 2025

Egypt: The government has announced a series of measures to stabilise the cement market following a period of price increases, according to Ahram Online. Deputy Prime Minister for Industrial Development and Minister of Industry and Transport Kamel El-Wazir announced steps to boost production, limit exports and introduce transparent pricing.

At the end of August 2025, El-Wazir met with major cement producers, regulators and chambers of commerce and called for further price reductions, alongside continuous production, and said that eight idle production lines would be restarted. Local cement production reached 25.39Mt between January and July 2025, up from 23.3Mt a year earlier. With demand expected to grow both domestically and abroad, the government has signalled that it may issue new licences for cement factories. Among the government’s new measures are requiring companies to print the anticipated retail price on cement bags at least one month in advance to protect customers from sudden price fluctuations.

Algeria: The Souakri Group has signed a one-year agreement with a Libyan partner to supply cement by land and sea during the Intra-African Trade Fair in Algiers. The deal is valued at US$51m. Contracts signed at the fair, between Algerian and and other African companies totalled over US$300m, according to local press.

Indonesia: Domestic cement sales dropped by 3% year-on-year to 27.7Mt in the first half of 2025, down from 28.5Mt in the same period of 2024, according to the Indonesian Cement Association (ASI). Cement production also fell by 6% to 28.8Mt from 30.5Mt a year earlier.

ASI chair Lilik Unggul Raharjo said demand had contracted across most regions, except in Sumatra and Maluku-Papua, which posted growth of 4.9% and 5% respectively. He attributed the sales decline to weak household purchasing power and reduced government spending on infrastructure projects. The market remains oversupplied, resulting in a capacity utilisation rate of 56%. However, corporate secretary at PT Indocement Dani Handajani said that the company expects volumes to increase in the second half of 2025.

India: Industries Minister D Sridhar Babu has appealed to the union government to revive the defunct Cement Corporation of India (CCI) plant in Adilabad. At a meeting with senior officials, the proposals for restoration were reviewed. CCI management indicated that about US$227m would be needed to modernise the facility with ‘advanced’ equipment. Once operational, the unit could reportedly employ nearly 3000 people, according to Telangana Today.

Sridhar Babu said Adilabad would greatly benefit from the plant’s revival, but that it should remain under the government’s control and not become privatised. He also said that more than 809 hectares of limestone deposits are available in the region, providing long-term raw material security and ensuring the plant’s viability.