September 2024
Indian firms cartel appeal heard 12 June 2013
India: On 11 June 2013 the Supreme Court admitted the appeals of several cement manufacturers against a Competition Appellate Tribunal (CAT) order, which directed the cement companies to pay a penalty for allegedly forming a cartel. The case is scheduled to come up towards the end of the week ending 14 June 2013 after the reply of the Builders Association of India (BAI).
The cement companies argued that the penalty, fixed ad hoc at the rate of 10% of their worth, was huge and unjustified. If the firms do not pay the penalties, their appeal case (before CAT) will be automatically dismissed, according to the CAT order.
UltraTech Cement Ltd, argued that CCI did not find any prima facie case against the 11 companies picked by the association out of 42 major cement manufacturers but still the CAT imposed a penalty in an interim order. The deadline for payment of the penalties is 16 June 2013.
Among the cement manufacturers that have appealed to the Supreme Court against the CAT order are Jaiprakash Associates, Century Textiles & Industries and Madras Cements.
Semen Indonesia's pace ahead of national average 12 June 2013
Indonesia: PT Semen Indonesia's sales in the January 2013 to April 2013 period reached 7.91Mt, a year-on-year rise of 19% from 6.65Mt compared to the same period of 2012. PT Semen Indonesia's sales rose by far more than the national average for all cement producers, which grew by 8.6% over the same time period.
The company's cement sales in Kalimantan rose by 11.4% in the period of January to April 2013, reaching 1.47Mt. The highest sales growth rate, 23.1% year-on-year was recorded in Nusa Tenggara. The company said that the cement market in Kalimantan was still full of potential and continued to grow in line with increasing infrastructure development in the region.
In South Kalimantan sales by PT Semen Indonesia Group (Semen Gresik and Semen Tonasa) in the same time period rose from 108,470t to 112,770t.
Mill breakdown at Oman Cement 12 June 2013
Oman: One of the cement grinding mills at Oman Cement Company (OCC), which has a production capacity of 150t/hr, has developed a major technical problem and has been shut down for repairs. An inspection by the technical expert from the manufacturer has indicated that the spare parts required to carry out the repairs will be available in about 14 weeks' time. The company also highlighted that it was investigating alternative ways to repair the mill locally.
The effect of the failure is that 0.36Mt less cement will be produced between June 2013 and September 2013, if the manufacturer's repair time estimate holds.
Saudi contract for Loesche 12 June 2013
Saudi Arabia: China's Sinoma, which is building a cement plant in Tahamah, Saudi Arabia, has ordered a LM 56.4 raw mill from Germany's Loesche GmbH. The vertical roller mill will have a production rate of 400t/hr and a mill motor with a capacity of 4000kW. In addition to the mill, Loesche will also deliver a metal detector, magnetic separator, slide gates and rotary valves.
The delivery of the hardware is planned for October and December 2013.
Vietnamese plant coming by end of 2013 12 June 2013
Vietnam: Xuan Thanh Investment and Development JSC, the investor behind the Thach My cement plant in the central province of Quang Nam, has said that the plant is on track to produce its first products in mid-December 2013.
The investor has completed about 95% of the project's construction and will hand it to the contractor on 15 July 2013, according to a government announcement.
The Thanh My cement plant covers 57.36 hectares in Nam Giang district. The plant has a total investment cost of US$192m and a designed capacity of 1.7Mt/yr of cement in its first phase. Construction began in July 2010 but it was delayed.
Once in operation, the plant will employ about 1000 local people.
Siemens to supply turbine to Nesher Cement 12 June 2013
Israel: Siemens Turbine will supply a combined cycle steam turbine to Nesher Cement's Ramla Plant in Israel. The company will supply an SST-300 industrial turbine with the output of 23.75MW to the plant, which is located between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. The turbine has been completed recently and is ready for transport from Brno, Czech Republic to Israel.
Misr Cement Qena back online 12 June 2013
Egypt: Misr Cement Qena has announced that production has restarted at its plant after a period of disruption that was brought about by a shortage of mazot (a type of heavy fuel oil) at the plant.
The price of mazot has been increased by a factor of nearly 2.5 by the government since the start of 2013. Cement companies like Misr Cement Qena are increasingly looking to use other types of fuel, including alternative fuels.
Turkish authority probes price setting behaviour 12 June 2013
Turkey: Turkey's Competition Authority said on 11 June 2013 that it had launched a probe into the local cement producers Çimsa Çimento and Oyak Adana Çimento on allegations of price setting.
The authority said that data gathered during a preliminary inquiry was sufficient to open an investigation into whether or not the two companies had violated competition regulations by setting prices for white cement.
Iraq follows Turkmenistan on Iranian imports 11 June 2013
Iraq/Iran: Following a similar move by Turkmenistan, Iraq will stop importing Iranian cements from 1 July 2013, according to Sadeq Sava'edi, the deputy head of Khuzestan's Cement Exporters Union in Iran. Iran currently exports 20,000-30,000t/day of cement to Iraq.
Sava'edi said that the move aims to boost Iraq's domestic cement production, according to the ISNA News Agency quoted. He further said that political and security issues were also influential in the decision.
The news from Iraq, which is Iran's largest destination for cement exports, came as Mohammad Fatemian, an official with the Iranian Industry, Mine, and Trade Ministry said that Iran plans to export 18.5Mt of cement in the current Iranian calendar year, which ends on 20 March 2014. Iran's cement and clinker exports stood at 16.5Mt for the year to 20 March 2013, exporting 11.85Mt of cement and 1.79Mt of clinker.
Iran produced over 70Mt of cement in the past Iranian calendar year, according to cement industry officials. Capacity is expected to reach 110Mt/yr by 2015.
Iran exported cement to 24 countries including Iraq, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Pakistan, Qatar, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Georgia, Oman, India and China in the past Iranian year.
Lafarge to expand in China 07 June 2013
China: Top global cement producer Lafarge said on 5 June 2013 that it will continue to invest in China, despite overcapacity issues that have plagued the cement industry for years. Bruno Lafont, chairman and chief executive officer of Lafarge, said the company will invest in China using a 'value-growth' model.
Lafont said that Lafarge is likely to invest more in research, production and creating new partnerships in China. He said that the company will prioritise its existing position in Southwest China, although it may expand to other parts of the country. Lafarge expects to earn income of US$32.6m in China by 2015, according to Chen Mei, vice president of Lafarge Shui On Cement.
Lafarge has mainly operated in less developed regions in southwest China since it entered the Chinese market in 1994. Lafont said that China's overcapacity issues have appeared in other growing markets before, adding that inefficient and unsustainable players will eventually be phased out.
Just 69.4% of China's cement industry's capacity was used in 2012, according to a survey conducted by the China Enterprise Confederation.