Displaying items by tag: Bangladesh

Bangladesh: Protesters in Chhatak, Sunamganj District have accused LafargeHolcim Bangladesh of selling limestone illegally. The New Nation newspaper has reported that protesters allege that the company sold imported Indian limestone on the open market. They allege that the limestone was imported exclusively for use as a raw material in cement production under Bangladeshi tax law.

Bangladesh: Cricketer and Bangladesh national team captain Tamim Iqbal has secured a brand ambassador contract with Seven Rings Cement. United News of Bangladesh has reported that the parties signed the contract at a ceremony at which director and chief executive officer Raihan Ahmed and chief financial officer and company secretary Kausar Alam were in attendance.

Iqbal said, “I am very proud to be associated with Seven Rings Cement, which is the only cement company that has three cement plants in three different places in Bangladesh."

News has been dripping out slowly over the last few months about which assets HeidelbergCement is planning to divest. This week reporting from Bloomberg suggested that the German-based building materials producer might be seriously considering selling one or more integrated plants in Spain. The idea is reportedly part of a wider review of its portfolio in the country with the possible inclusion of cement plants at San Sebastian and Bilbao at a future date also. A proposed price of Euro300m for the national business was put forward by the sources to the reporters but it is unclear how many cement plants that figure includes.

HeidelbergCement announced in July 2020 that it had reduced the value of its total assets by Euro3.4bn following a review. It blamed this on reduced demand for building materials due to the coronavirus pandemic and the devaluation of its Hanson subsidiary in the UK, in part related to the UK’s exit from the European Union. A divestment plan followed at its Capital Markets Day event in September 2020 when it said it was simplifying its country portfolio and prioritising the strongest market positions. To this end it said it was setting up a watch list of underperforming assets to keep an eye on.

Over the next few months a number of corporate reorganisations and actual confirmed divestments occurred as well as plenty of speculation. HeidelbergCement-controlled Suez Cement started to acquire a 100% stake in its own subsidiary, Tourah Portland Cement, in September 2020. Suez Cement then sold its majority stake in Kuwait-based Hilal Cement in late January 2021. This week HeidelbergCement Bangladesh informed the local stock exchange that it is planning to amalgamate its subsidiary Emirates Cement.

Signs that European reviews had taken place could be seen later in the autumn of 2020. In November 2020 the Italian press picked up on rumours that HeidelbergCement was planning to move subsidiary Italcementi’s research centre from Bergamo, Lombardy, to Heidelberg in Baden Württemberg. Whether this was ever a serious proposition or not, this appeared to have been avoided in early February 2021 when an Italian union said it had agreed with Italcementi to keep the research centre in Italy as well as a preserving jobs generally. Meanwhile, also in November 2020, France-based subsidiary Ciments Calcia announced a major upgrade at its integrated Airvault cement plant but along with the conversion of two other integrated plants into a grinding unit and a terminal respectively, and changes at the French headquarters at Guervill.

Just before Christmas the bigger speculations started to appear in the press, with a story suggesting that HeidelbergCement was considering selling assets in California, US, with a target price of US$1.5bn for three integrated plants and associated concrete and aggregate units. That story is particularly beguiling given Cemex’s decision this month to reopen a kiln in Mexico to supply cement to the southwest US to meet shortages (See GCW 493)! Incidentally, readers should also note the story this week about a shortage of natural gas exports from Texas, US, that has caused cement plants in northern Mexico to shut down. This week, as mentioned at the start, has seen Spain added to the list of places that HeidelbergCement might be considering selling up in. The Spanish market like Italy has been rationalising heavily over the last decade particularly as export markets have dwindled. Oficemen, the Spanish cement association, reported that domestic cement consumption fell by 10% year-on-year to 13.3Mt in 2020 from 14.7Mt in 2019. On top of this Oficemen has repeatedly warned of the threat that CO₂ emissions prices pose for its members’ exports.

Group chairman Dominik von Achten told Reuters this month that the company plans to sell the first of the five assets in early-to-mid 2021. Of course he wouldn’t say where, except for adding that the company would stay in ‘rock solid’ markets like Northern Europe. Indonesia has been seen as a candidate for disposal by analysts, likely due to local production overcapacity levels and LafargeHolcim’s own departure in Indonesia 2018. All Von Achten would say on the matter was that Indonesia was an ‘important’ market for the group. Whether it’s seen as important for reducing company debt or building value remains to be seen. HeidelbergCement hasn’t exactly been shy about saying what they are doing over the last half year or so but they are only going so far and they won’t comment on speculation. So in the meantime we must wait to find out more.

Bangladesh: HeidelbergCement Bangladesh plans to amalgamate its subsidiary Emirates Cement. The Daily Star newspaper has reported that fellow HeidelbergCement Bangladesh subsidiary Emirates Power Company will also be merged as part of the reorganisation.

The subsidiary of Germany-based Heidelberg Cement acquired Emirates Cement Bangladesh and Emirates Power for around US$21.5m in 2019. Emirates Cement Bangladesh operates a plant at Munshiganj with a production capacity of 0.66Mt/yr.

Indonesia: Semen Indonesia subsidiary Semen Padang’s cement and clinker exports totalled 1.6Mt in 2020. Indonesia Government News has reported that the company said that it exported 0.2Mt of cement and 1.4Mt of clinker throughout the year. The main markets for its products were Bangladesh, China, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Australia, the Maldives and Sri Lanka.

Semen Indonesia group senior export sales manager Fifit Abriyanto said, “There are two types of cement that we export, namely ordinary Portland cement (OPC) Type I grade 52.5N and OPC Type I grade 42.5N."

Bangladesh: The Bangladesh Cement Manufacturers Association (BCMA) has called on the state-owned Bangladesh Bank (BB) to extend an ongoing moratorium period on the payment of loan instalments by another six months to mid-2021 in response to the negative economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic. The original loan window was schedule to end on 31 December 2020, according to the Dhaka Tribune newspaper. The association has also called for a fixed lending rate for non-government lenders due to rising costs. Local cement sales fell by 13% year-on-year in the five months from January to May 2020 due to a coronavirus-related lockdown that ended in late May 2020.

Bangladesh: LafargeHolcim subsidiary LafargeHolcim Bangladesh has donated US$117,000 to the Bangladesh Labour Welfare Foundation (BLWF) fund. The New Nation newspaper has reported that State Minister for Labour and Employment Monnujan Sufian received the cheque on behalf of the BLWF, which in 2020 supported 10,500 workers with US$5.2m-worth of financial support.

Bangladesh: LafargeHolcim Group subsidiary LafargeHolcim Bangladesh has launched Holcim Water Protect, a water-resistant cement “developed through the company’s in-house product innovation and manufacturing capabilities in collaboration with the Innovation Centre of LafargeHolcim Group.” The product is “scientifically formulated and customised for the Bangladesh market by leveraging LafargeHolcim Group’s Smart Blend Technology (SBT). Holcim Water Protect ensures reduced capillary action, resisting the permeation of water thus making it damp and seepage resistant.” The company says that use of the product will result in “stronger and more durable homes” compared to Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC).

Chief executive officer (CEO) Rajesh Surana said, “We are delighted to introduce our most innovative and premium product Holcim Water Protect for our customers in Bangladesh. This product has been developed through continuous consumer engagement, research and thorough understanding of the damaging impact of water on houses. Given the heavy rainfall in Bangladesh, we believe that Holcim Water Protect shall help our customers build their dream homes, free from dampness and seepages.”

Iran: Cement production rose by 14.4% year-on-year to 35.6Mt in the first half of the local calendar year that started in March 2020 from 31.1Mt in the same period in the previous year. The sector exported 5.8Mt of cement with a value of US$128m to 28 countries according to the Mehr News Agency. India, Afghanistan, Russia, Iraq, Qatar, Kenya, Kuwait, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Armenia, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, China and Oman were among the export destinations of cement.

Bangladesh: The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) has written to Aramit Cement to seek an explanation for the company’s transfer of around US$9m as an interest-free loan to a sister company. The Dhaka Tribune newspaper says that the cement producer reported a loss in the financial year to 30 June 2020 and issued no dividend to its shareholders. However, had the company charged 10% interest on the loan, it could enabled the payment of a 20% cash dividend to shareholders. BSEC subsequently sought information on loans to associated companies.

Company secretary Syed Kamruzzaman said, “The board of directors would explain the issue to the BSEC soon.” The BSEC has ordered a refund of the loan along with interest by the end of November 2020.