September 2024
China Resources Cement starts production at Lianjiang plant 01 August 2016
China: China Resources Cement has started operation at its 6000t/day cement plant in Lianjiang, Guangdong. The integrated cement plant is aimed at markets in the west of Guangdong and the southeast of Guangxi. The company has completed the construction of all of its planned production lines in Guangdong. Its total clinker and cement production capacities in Guangdong are 14.4Mt/yr and 22.5Mt/yr respectively.
Cementir buys Sacci cement business for Euro125m 01 August 2016
Italy: Cementir Holding’s subsidiary Cementir Italia has acquired Sacci’s cement and ready-mixed concrete business division for Euro125m. The acquisition has been made by Cementir Sacci, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cementir Italia. A payment of Euro122.5m was made on 29 July 2016. The remainder will be paid in July 2018. A financing contract has been signed with the related party ICAL 2 to finance the acquisition.
Cementir Holding group will operate in Italy through two companies: Cementir Italia and Cementir Sacci, approximately doubling its production capacity, commercial strength and distribution network. The industrial footprint has grown, with the addition of five cement production plants, three distribution terminals and 28 ready-mixed concrete plants. In Italy, total installed capacity will be 6.8Mt/yr and the company’s presence will increase from six to 11 of the country’s regions.
Cementir presents mixed results in first half of 2016 01 August 2016
Italy: Cementir Holding’s sales revenue has risen by 1.1% year-on-year to Euro481m in the first half of 2016 from Euro476 in the same period in 2015. However, its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 1.5% to Euro72m from Euro73.1 and its net profit fell by 53.7% to Euro11m from Euro23.9m. The group blamed the drop in profit indicators on exchange rate movements.
Sales volumes of cement for the building materials producer rose by 4.8% to 4.75Mt from 4.53Mt. Revenue grew in Scandinavian countries and in Malaysia, it remained stable in Turkey and it fell in Italy, Egypt and China.
Jordan: Vortex Global, a US solids and bulk handling components company, has appointed Smart Systems for Factories Operation & Maintenance as its agent in Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Tunisia, Qatar and Yemen. Smart is a Middle Eastern supplier of dedusting systems, including industrial ventilations systems, shut off valves, loading spouts and filters.
"Smart has the ability to provide our customers in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region with any type of equipment for mineral industries including the cement, potash and phosphate industries," said Laurence Millington, Vortex’s Director of International Business. "We are delighted to have Smart represent us now and going into the future.”
Smart Systems was established in 2007 as a specialised technical and turnkey solution provider for the cement and mineral industries. The Smart team consists of project managers, mining experts, operation managers and maintenance managers in mechanical, electrical, instrumentation, control, erection and utilities aspects.
Germany/Norway: Germany’s Berthold Technologies has acquired the Norwegian company Sensor Technology (S-Tec). S-Tec is a specialist for nucleonic gauges with experience in the oil and gas industries. Its products and the close cooperation with major customers and research institutes will continue. Berthold Technologies is a supplier of radiometric instruments for process control.
Fiji: Pacific Cement’s sakes volumes of cement have increased by 45% to 150,561t in the last year. 104,000t of cement was sold locally, according to the Fiji Times newspaper. General manager Sowani Tuidrola attributed the boost in sales to growth in the local market. At present Pacific Cement’s plant produces 500t/day of cement. The cement producer exports cement to Vanuatu, Tonga, Samoa, Tarawa, Solomon Islands, Cook Islands, Wallis and Futuna, Papua New Guinea and Timor Leste.
Greece: Titan’s turnover has risen by 7.6% year-on-year to Euro724m in the first half of 2016 from Euro673m in the same period in 2015. Its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 13.5% to Euro120m from Euro105m. However, its net profit fell by 62% to Euro9.2m from Euro24.2m for the half-year period. The construction materials company benefited from growth in the US and Egypt but currency exchange rates, particularly in Egypt, hit its profits.
In the US Titan reported that sales revenue increased by 18.8% to Euro373m despite a long second quarter maintenance period at its Pennsuco cement plant in Florida. Turnover in Greece and Western Europe fell by 9.1% to Euro133.4m. In South-eastern Europe it rose by 6.7% to Euro97m. In Egypt turnover rose by 11.7% in local currency terms but fell by 0.6% in Euros to Euro121m. the group noted that in this country group plant production levels have reverted to levels similar of the pre-fuel crisis years. Coal mills have been implemented on both production lines at the Beni Suef plant since the end of March 2016 to reduce costs. Similar work at the Alexandria plant is on-going and will be completed by the end of 2016.
The group expects growth in the US to drive growth and profit for Titan in 2016 as a whole with support from an improved market in Egypt.
Dangote to slow growth strategy as Naira devalues 29 July 2016
Nigeria: Dangote Cement says that it will slow down its growth strategy in response to ‘challenging’ markets in Nigeria and the rest of Africa. Chief executive Onne van der Weijde made the comment in the Nigerian cement producer’s financial results for the first half of 2016. The group now intends to focus on a five-year building programme to better balance funding and investment.
Dangote Cement’s total revenue rose by 20.6% year-on-year to US$926m from US$768m in the same period of 2015. However, its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA), a measure of operating profitability, fell by 10.2% to US$420m from US$468m.
“We have achieved a commendable result, given the very challenging situation in our main market and general economic weakening across Africa,” said Onne van der Weijde. “The devaluation of the Naira will obviously have an impact on costs and our priority will be to protect margins.” He added that the group was ‘optimistic’ that Nigerian infrastructure investment would soon increase demand for cement.
Dangote saw its sales volumes of cement rise by 59.5% to 13Mt from 8.1Mt. The bulk of sales, 8.77Mt, were in Nigeria, with fast increases in South and East Africa as operations in Tanzania started.
Germany: HeidelbergCement’s sales revenue has fallen slightly by 1% year-on-year to Euro6.41bn in the first half of 2016 from Euro6.47bn in the same period of 2015. This was blamed on consolidation and exchange rate effects. Otherwise, profit rose by 46% to Euro354m from Euro242m. Clinker and cement sales volumes rose by 2.9% to 39.9Mt from 38.8Mt.
“In operational terms, the second quarter of 2016 was the best since the financial crisis and thus continued the positive trend of the previous year,” said Bernd Scheifele, Chairman of the Managing Board of the company. “The positive market environment in our mature markets and the recovery of demand in Eastern Europe made a significant contribution. We were able to raise the margins in operational terms in all business lines thanks to our margin improvement programmes and price increases in core markets. Furthermore, we have benefited from declining fuel costs.”
The group’s cement sales revenue fell by 3% to Euro2.92bn from Euro3.01bn. Its Northern and Eastern Europe-Central Asia and Africa-Eastern Mediterranean Basin areas both reported falling revenue from cement sales. However, the Asia-Pacific area saw its cement sales fall by 11% to Euro675m. Sales in North America partially offset this, with cement sales volumes growing by 4.7% to 5.9Mt from 5.6Mt.
HeidelbergCement reported that its acquisition of Italcementi is well on track with the subscription period for a mandatory tender offer to the remaining shareholders of Italcementi set to end on 30 September 2016. The entire takeover transaction is expected to be completed in the second half of 2016. HeidelbergCement also said that it had received ‘high’ interest for its assets on sale in the US. Binding offers are expected in the first half of August 2016.
India: The credit ratings agency ICRA has predicted that cement demand is likely to increase by 6% year-on-year in the 2016 – 2017 financial year from 5% in the previous period due to a government focus on developing infrastructure and better weather. The growth in demand is also likely to lead to higher prices, especially in the northern and eastern states. Infrastructure development is expected to arise from road and house building.
"With the pace of new capacity addition slowing down, we expect capacity utilisation and the supply-demand scenario to show an improvement, especially in the 2017 – 2018 fiscal year, which should support cement prices and profitability indicators for cement manufacturers," said ICRA Ratings’ Senior Vice-President Sabyasachi Majumdar.
ICRA report that growth in demand for cement slowed to 3.4% in April and May 2016 from 9 – 13.5% in January to March 2016. It attributed this to weak rural demand, especially in Maharashtra, and a slowdown in infrastructure development partly due to a drought. However, demand grew faster in north and east India.