September 2024
Cemex concrete plant in Panama receives certification from Concrete Sustainability Council 01 February 2019
Panama: Cemex’s Panama Norte concrete plant has been awarded Responsible Sourcing Certification from the Concrete Sustainability Council (CSC). The building materials company says it is the first facility in the ready-mix concrete sector in Latin America to receive this designation. The plant met the CSC requirements via an audit by SGS, an independent certification body.
“We are proud of our Panama Norte plant for becoming the first concrete facility in Latin America to attain CSC certification, and we are committed to foster our leadership in the industry by delivering a superior customer experience and integrating sustainability into all aspects of our business,” said Andres Jimenez, President of Cemex Panama.
Launched in 2017 by 11 founding members - including the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, the Portland Cement Association and Cemex - the CSC aims to improve the transparency of the concrete sector and highlight the essential role of concrete in creating a sustainable construction sector by getting recognition in green procurement government policies and building rating systems. The CSC acts as a certification system, grading building materials facilities on environmental, social and governance practices throughout supply chains.
Taiwan Cement reassures public about quality of cement 31 January 2019
Taiwan: Taiwan Cement has reassured the public about the quality and safety standards of its cement and other products. It follows fraud charges being issued to a former government official for supplying raw materials mixed with industrial waste to the cement producer, according to the Taipei Times. Taiwan Cement says it is conducting inspections on all raw materials, including taking random samples of the top and bottom layers of delivery trucks from suppliers.
Lai Chin-kun, a former Hualien County Council speaker, secured local government contracts for his family’s companies to dispose of industrial waste, including industrial byproducts and inorganic debris from electroplating, optoelectronics and display panel manufacturers and pulp paper processing companies. Another family company won a contract with Taiwan Cement in 2010 to supply limestone, clay, sand and other raw materials required for cement production.
Prosecutors allege that when supplying raw materials to Taiwan Cement, Lai instructed company drivers to fill the bottom half of the trucks with industrial waste and place natural materials, such as clay, sand and limestone, on the top half to fool inspectors. Lai reportedly made US$14.1m from the scheme from 2010 to 2015.
Philippines: Cemex Philippines has received a set of tax breaks and financial incentives for the new 1.5Mtyr production line it is planning to build at its Solid Cement plant in Antipolo, Rizal. Its subsidiary Solid Cement has obtained ‘pioneer’ status from the Board of Investment (BOI) but with ‘non-pioneer’ incentives, according to the Inquirer newspaper. This means that the project may be able to benefit from a longer income-tax holiday. The new production line is scheduled to be operational by early 2020.
Colombian cement production grows modestly in 2018 31 January 2019
Colombia: Ordinary Portland Cement production grew by 1.2% year-on-year to 12.5Mt in 2018 from 12.3Mt in 2017. Data from DANE, the Colombian statistics authority, shows that deliveries to the local market increased slightly, by 0.2%, to 12Mt. Production grew faster in December 2018 on a year-on-year basis with 6.8% growth.
Mining market drives FLSmidth’s sales in 2018 31 January 2019
Denmark: An improving mining market has driven FLSmidth’s sales, order intake and earnings in 2018. Its overall order intake grew by 13% year-on-year to Euro2.91bn in 2018 from Euro2.57bn in 2017. Its revenue increased by 4% to Euro2.51bn and its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 5% to Euro212m.
"The high order intake in 2018 is due to an improving mining market, but it also reflects the performance of our organisation, our position and strong lifecycle solutions. This combination lays a good foundation for future growth," said group chief executive officer (CEO) Thomas Schulz.
However, the group’s cement business order intake remained stable at Euro1.19bn. Sales revenue fell by 3% to Euro1.10bn and EBITDA dropped by 22% to Euro51m. It described the cement market as “very competitive with stable pricing at a low level.” It did note a ‘healthy level’ of small to mid-sized orders related to grinding plants, upgrades, retrofits and single equipment. Replacement and upgrade projects are anticipated to show continued growth in 2019.
Bedeschi to supply crusher for Quicklime Plant 31 January 2019
Vietnam: Italy’s Bedeschi has signed a contract to supply a double roller crushing unit and relevant control panels for the Quicklime Plant being built in Hoa Binh, Northern Vietnam. The unit is being built by a local cement producer. Start-up is scheduled by mid-2020.
US/Canada: Terex says that its Terex Washing Systems (TWS) brand is investing in its North American sales and operational teams. Following the spend it will have 20 regional partners via 50 service depots, 60 mobile trucks and 100 technicians in the region.
“Our new enhanced levels of sales and service and support will build upon momentum gained in recent years as we continue to focus on serving customers, with world-class washing equipment solutions that add commercial value to their operations,” said TWS’ director Oliver Donnelly.
TWS manufactures products for the mineral washing sector for aggregate, recycling, mining and industrial sand industries.
Update on the Philippines 30 January 2019
The cement industry in the Philippines has been generating a lot of ‘steam’ in the past three months. Some of this has now come to a head in the last few weeks with the Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI) decision to impose tariffs on imported cement and the Philippine Competition Commission’s (PCC) on-going investigation into alleged-anti-competitive behaviour. Then, there was the unnamed sourced quoted by Bloomberg this week that LafargeHolcim was seriously thinking about selling up in the country.
Resistance to imported cement has been building for a while as local producers and importers have repeatedly clashed in the media. The latest thread of this story started in September 2018 when the DTI started an investigation into imports. A review by the department found that imports grew by 70% year-on-year in 2014, 4391% in 2015, 549% in 2016 and 72% in 2017. However, the market share of imports grew from 0.02% in 2013 to 15% in 2017. This was followed by various organisations taking sides. The Philippine Constructors Association, Laban Konsyumer (a consumer group), the Philippine Cement Importers Association and others came out on the side of the importers, warning of the risk to prices and consumers if duties were implemented.
It didn’t stop the DTI though. It imposed a provisional safeguard duty of US$0.16/bag on imported cement, around 4% of the cost of a 40kg bag. The PCC then said that it was going to consider the new tariff as part of its on-going investigation. Its probe started in 2017 following allegations that the Cement Manufacturers Association of the Philippines (CEMAP), LafargeHolcim Philippines and Republic Cement and Building Materials had violated the Philippines Competition Act by engaging in anti-competitive agreements.
Amid all of this, LafargeHolcim popped up earlier this week with a news story that it was actively trying to find the ‘right’ price for its local subsidiary, Holcim Philippines. The ‘right’ price at the moment being something around US$2.5bn for four integrated plants and associated assets. That’s around US$225/t of production capacity using the total of 8.4Mt/yr in the Global Cement Directory 2019 and considering LafargeHolcim’s 75% share in the subsidiary. This is about what you’d expect, but it is certainly higher than the US$120/t LafargeHolcim has officially accepted for its divestment of its Indonesian operations.
Given the anonymous nature of the sources involved, it’s uncertain whether LafargeHolcim’s alleged intentions to sell in the Philippines is anything more than market scuttlebutt. What is more certain is that Holcim Philippines has had a tough time so far in 2018, reporting a 23% year-on-year drop in earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) to US$64.8m in the first nine months of 2018 from US$83.9m in the same period in 2017. Sales have grown but this has been hit by the fuel, power and distribution costs as well as the depreciation of the Philippine Peso against the US Dollar. It also blamed imports for its problems. However, alongside all of this the company announced in December 2018 that it was spending US$300m towards increasing its production capacity by 30% to 13Mt/yr by 2020. This includes upgrades to its plants at Bulacan and Misamis Oriental with the installation of new kilns, mills and waste heat recovery systems.
The latest victory in the war between producers and importers seems to be on the side of the producers as the government steps in with protection for the industry. The Philippines’ economy is doing well with its gross domestic product (GDP) forecast to rise by 6.5% in 2019 by the World Bank. The trick for the government will be striking the balance between shielding industry from dumping and allowing the construction industry to keep on growing. Rumours about LafargeHolcim selling up are enticing but seem less likely than LafargeHolcim’s decision to exit Indonesia. Leaving would mean abandoning South-East Asia and exiting a country with a growing industry.
José Antonio Cabrera appointed president of Cemex Dominicana 30 January 2019
Dominican Republic: Cemex has appointed José Antonio Cabrera as the president of Cemex Dominicana. He succeeds Alejandro Ramírez, who has been named president of Cemex Colombia, according to the El Nuevo Dia newspaper. The business has operations in the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Puerto Rico.
Cabrera previously served as Vice President of Strategic Planning at Cemex Egypt, as well as Vice President of Strategic Planning for Cemex's Asia, Middle East and Africa (AMEA) region. He first joined Cemex in 2000 and has held positions including Commercial and Operations Director of Cemex Spain and Project Manager of Strategic Planning for Cemex Spain and the Mediterranean region.
Qassim Cement appoints new chairman 30 January 2019
Saudi Arabia: Qassim Cement has appointed Tarek bin Mutlaq Al Mutlaq as the chairman of the board of directors. It has also formed new executive and remuneration committees.