September 2024
India: Dalmia Cement and South Eastern Railways have inaugurated a freight train. The ceremony marked the start of an agreement whereby the cement producer will use its own locomotives with branded rakes of goods wagons, according to the Pioneer newspaper. The deal covers five such freight trains.Image
Argentina: Loma Negra has signed an agreement with the Asociación Obrera Minera Argentina (AOMA) union and the government to keep the Barker cement plant open. The deal follows three months of negotiations, according to La Nacion newspaper. The cement producer wanted to reduce the number of shifts at the grinding plant. It previously said it had started to close the plant in early-June 2019. The plant will continue to operate with 160 staff working a reduced workload amongst other concessions.
Taiheiyo Cement agrees with Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures recommendations 24 June 2019
Japan: Taiheiyo Cement says it agrees with the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). It is promoting research and development business strategies to mitigate and adapt to climate change. The cement producer is also intending to publish a long-term plan to reduce its CO2 emissions by 2050.
South Africa: Lafarge Africa has agreed to sell its full stake in Lafarge South Africa business to Caricement for US$317m. The deal is expected to complete in the third quarter of 2019 subject to regulatory approval. Proceeds from the transaction will be used to pay off Lafarge Africa’s shareholder loan of US$293m.
The subsidiary of Lafarge Holcim said that net sales fell by 2.6% year-on-year to US$218m in the first quarter of 2019 from US$224m in the same period in 2018. Its operating profit rose by 35% to US$23.4m from US$17.3m. Growth was driven by the Nigerian market and it described its cement volumes as ‘flat’ in South Africa. It also reported that its revenue rose by 3% year-on-year to US$855m in 2018 from US$829m in 2017. It reduced its loss to US$25.6m from US$43.7m.
Philippine Cement Importers Association refutes claims that imports are damaging local industry 21 June 2019
Philippines: The Philippine Cement Importers Association (PCIA) has refuted the claims of local cement manufacturers that an increase in cement imports has caused ‘serious injury’ to their operations. In a position paper submitted to the Tariff Commission on the imposition of safeguard measures on imported cement, the PCIA said that some local producers were reporting continued profits despite the level of imports, according to the Manila Bulletin newspaper. It also denied accusations that cement imports were absorbing 17.2% of local production and 14.2% of total market demand.
"We have a domestic cement industry that is robust and resilient amid the import surge, and already competitive against imports,'' said the PCIA. "The 2013 to 2017 results of operations of the domestic cement industry showed its ability to compete with cement imports. Despite the surge of imports during the period of investigation (2013 - 2017), the domestic industry continued to exhibit improving revenues and continuing profitability." It finished by saying that the Philippine cement industry was globally competitive and did not require any structural adjustment.
France/Syria: The Court of Appeal in Paris will decide on 24 October 2019 whether charges of financing terrorism and crimes against humanity will be upheld. Lafarge and its former executives Bruno Lafont, former chief executive officer (CEO) of Lafarge, former safety director Jean-Claude Veillard, and one of the former directors of its Syrian subsidiary, Frédéric Jolibois have challenged the indictments, according to the Agence France-Presse. The legal case is investigating Lafarge’s conduct in Syria between 2011 and 2014. It has been accused of financing terrorism through indirect payments to extremist groups to keep its Jalabiya cement plant operational after the outbreak of war in Syria.
Myanmar: June Cement Industry’s new 5000t/day plant is waiting for permission from the government to use 15MW of electricity generated from two coal power plants. The US$471m unit is based at PyarTaung, KawPaNaw Village, Kyaikmayaw Township in Mon State, according to the Mon News Agency. The plant will extract limestone from the Pyartaung Mountain area. Coal for the plant is expected to be delivered via the River Attran. Local residents have expressed concern that barges may cause flood damage along the river’s banks.
Colacem planning US$200m cement plant in Paraguay 21 June 2019
Paraguay: Italy’s Colacem is planning to build a US$200m cement plant at San Alfredo. It also wants to build a port terminal at the site, according to the ABC Color newspaper. The project is contingent on obtaining environmental permits. Construction work is scheduled to start in 2020 with commissioning in 2022.
Peru: Cemento Inka plans to start civil engineering work on its new 0.7Mt/yr grinding plant at Pisco by September 2019. The US$20m project is expected to take 12 months to complete with a commissioning date scheduled for the second half of 2020, according to the Gestión newspaper. The cement producer is also in talks with quarry owners to source limestone for the unit.
Loma Negra challenges US legal case 21 June 2019
Argentina: Loma Negra is challenging a proposed US-based court case on behalf of US-based shareholders. The legal challenge alleges that the cement producer misled investors by misrepresenting its exposure to a corruption scandal and downplayed the potential impact of the economic crisis in 2018, according to the Ámbito Financiero newspaper. Loma Negra says that it was never involved in any bidding process related to the corruption case relating to its Brazilian owner Camargo Correa. The US lawsuit is also taking legal action against the banks involved with Loma Negra’s initial public offering (IPO) in late 2017.