Displaying items by tag: Belarus
Belzarubezhstroy launches cement-bonded particleboard plant
06 October 2015Belarus: The Belarusian civil engineering company ZAO Belzarubezhstroy has opened a cement-bonded particleboard plant in Krichev, Mogilev on 5 October 2015. Austria's VST Building Technologies was a partner of Belzarubezhstroy and an investor in the project.
The new plant uses the premises of the former Krichev meatpacking factory and is located 7km from the Krichev cement mill, where its cement is sourced. Imported equipment was installed. The plant will make cement-bonded particleboards using the process flows developed by VST Building Technologies. The new technology boasts high speed and quality of construction processes, energy-effectiveness and wide geographical deployment.
The Belarusian Architecture and Construction minister Anatoly Cherny stressed that the opening of the plant represents a truly ground-breaking event for the civil engineering industry of the oblast and the country. "With cement-bonded particleboards of our own, we will be able to greatly reduce the cost of residential housing construction. We will be able to build more homes and export more construction materials," said Cherny.
The plant's construction was prompted by the rapid pace of housing and industrial construction in Belarus, as well as the need to find new ways to modernise the civil engineering industry and reduce costs. Belarus has had to import cement-bonded particleboard to make the panels until now. In addition to serving the local market, over 25% of the cement-bonded particleboard produced will be exported to the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and the European Union (EU). The plant's proximity to the Belarusian-Russian border and the two rail lines going in the eastern direction will minimise the costs of exports to Russia.
Belzarubezhstroy director general Vitaly Bondarik said that the project was a historical one for the company. "We hope that the site will become kind of a springboard for advancing joint operations and implementing new construction projects in Belarus and abroad together with our partner, VST Building Technologies AG. We expect a successful future and intend to implement a number of joint projects in Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, Ecuador, Algeria and other countries. The enterprise should become a successful example of a new construction formation in Belarus," said Bondarik.
Belzarubezhstroy used its own resources and foreign investments to build the plant. It will create 200 jobs to reach the designed output capacity of 60,000m3/yr. In the future, the output capacity may be increased up to 100,000m3/yr.
The new plant is the first step of the programme sketched out by the Belarusian and Austrian partners.
Belarus: Belarusian manufacturers are expected to export 1.8Mt of cement in 2015, including 1.3Mt to be supplied to Russia's Eurocement, according to Construction minister Anatol Chorny. Belarus sold 980,000t of cement to Eurocement in 2014. Belarus' cement output is expected to total 6.1Mt in 2015, up from 5.8Mt in 2014.
"This year we have signed an exclusive contract for the supply of 1.3Mt," said Chorny. "The contract is advantageous to Belarus because 50% of the total amount shall be paid in advance and the rest shall be paid within 10 days of the delivery date. If the price of cement in the Russian market is lower than in Belarus, the Russian company will cover the losses. If the price will be higher, the difference will be equally divided." Belarus will also export cement to Russia's Kaliningrad exclave, Poland and Lithuania in 2015.
Belarus' AAT Krychawtsementnashyfer in Krychaw, Mahilyow, operated at a loss in 2013. This was caused by its old production plant, which still uses natural gas to manufacture cement. In contrast, the company's new production facility generated a profit of about Euro676,000 in 2014. To reduce the cost of cement production, Krychawtsementnashyfer installed a cement kiln fuelled by waste tyres in 2014 and plans to start using coal dust as a fuel in 2015, according to Chorny.
Belarus government to repay cement companies’ debts to China
07 January 2015Belarus: The Belarusian government will acquire additional stakes in three cement companies in exchange for helping them to repay loans to China's Eximbank. The Council of Ministers has issued a directive that provides for restructuring the overdue debts incurred by Belarusian Cement Plant, Krychawtsementnashyfer and Krasnaselskbudmateryyaly as of 1 October 2014.
The three cement producers will receive the bailout on condition that they meet their profitability of sales targets for 2015 and fulfil their obligations to Eximbank starting 2015. Krasnaselskbudmateryyaly, Belarusian Cement Plant and Krychawtsementnashyfer owe US$34.4m, US$43.7m and US$50.6m to the Chinese bank, respectively, in overdue loan payments.
Belarusian Cement Plant and Krychawtsementnashyfer to hand over government-owned stakes to Belarusian Cement Company
15 July 2014Belarus: The Council of Ministers has ordered Belarusian Cement Plant and Krychawtsementnashyfer to hand over the government-owned stakes to Belarusian Cement Company. The move comes as part of a merger of all of Belarus' cement plans to create a new holding company, Belasrusian Cement Company.
Belarusian Cement Company is to receive 7,723,192 shares from Belarusian Cement Plant and 196,697,461 shares from Krychawtsementnashyfer. Belarusian Cement Company was initially expected to control Belarusian Cement Plant, Krychawtsementnashyfer and AAT Krasnaselskbudmateryyaly. However, it is still unclear whether Krasnaselskbudmateryyaly will join the holding company.
Belarus' president, Alyaksandr Lukashenka, approved the merger, which was proposed by Pyotr Rudnik, head of the Mahilyow Regional Executive Committee. Uladzimir Kisyalyow was appointed as director general of Belarusian Cement Company. Prior to the appointment, Kisyalyow served as first deputy head of the Mahilyow Regional Executive Committee.
President approves cement plant merger
11 July 2014Belarus: The president of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, has approved the merger of the country's cement plants into a holding company under the name Belarusian Cement Plant. It will include Krasnoselskstroymaterialy, Krichevtsementnoshifer and Belarusian Cement Plant. The holding company will mainly focus on export growth, as Belarus' cement output capacity is currently more than double the domestic demand. Belarusian cement plants manufactured 5.05Mt of cement in 2013, up by 3.1% year-on-year. Belarus exported 1.37Mt of cement in 2013, up by 36.5% year-on-year.
Belarus: Russia's Eurocement Group is ready to invest US$70 – 80m in a project to upgrade cement production facilities in Belarus, according to the minister of Architecture and Construction, Anatoly Chernyi.
"Eurocement offered to help us to switch the cement production plants from the wet process of cement production to the dry process," said Chernyi. Further negotiations will be held between the participants of the project to upgrade the facilities by 2017. The government has already approved the plans. The minister stressed that the wet process of cement production is energy consuming and costly.
The current combined capacity of the Belarusian cement plants is 9.5Mt/yr of cement, of which 5.4Mt is produced by dry kilns.
Kazakhstan considers purchase of Belarusian cement railway wagons
01 November 2013Belarus/Kazakhstan: Kazakhstan is interested in buying a 'large' batch of Belarus-built wagons for cement transportation, according to Nigmatzhan Isingarin, President of the Association of National Forwarding Agencies of Kazakhstan and the Kazakhstani Association of Freight Carriers and Wagon (Container) Operators. Isingarin met with the Prime Minister of Belarus, Mikhail Myasnikovich, on 31 October 2013. The wagons will be manufactured by the Mogilev railway car building plant.
In addition to negotiating a purchase, Isingarin and Myasnikovich discussed a contract for manufacturing and supplying wagons via international leasing. Isingarin said he was satisfied with the progress in the project's implementation. So far 425 wagons have been delivered.
President approves creation of Belarusian Cement Corporation
19 August 2013Belarus: President Alyaksandr Lukashenka has approved the creation a new cement company, the Belarusian Cement Corporation. The new holding company is expected to control three cement manufacturers: Belarusian Cement Plant in Kastsyukovichy, Mahilyow region, Krasnaselskbudmateryyaly in Vawkavysk, Hrodna region, and Krychawtsementnashyfer in the Mahilyow region, as well as a transport and logistics company.
The Belarusian Cement Corporation is to be established in 2014 and attract a strategic investor in 2015. The establishment of the corporation is intended to decrease production costs, increase profits and raise exports. After project capacity is achieved in 2015, the company will have a cement production capacity of 9.5Mt/yr.
Belarus cancels plant order with Iranian company
03 October 2012Belarus: Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka has ordered the Homel Regional Executive Committee to cancel an investment agreement under which Iran's Azarab Industries Company was to build a cement plant in the Vetka district.
Under the agreement, signed in May 2010, the Iranian company was to invest at least US$200m dollars in the project and complete the plant within three years. The Belarusian authorities hoped that the plant would be put into operation within 24 months. The investor was also to be granted the right to develop two chalk deposits near Vetka for a period of 50 years and export up to 70% of the output of the 1Mt/yr plant.
Uladzimir Dvornik, head of the Homel Regional Executive Committee, said in March 2011 that although the first stage of the project was to be completed on 7 February 2011, Azarab Industries Company had not submitted an implementation report. Instead, in January 2011, the regional government received a draft lease agreement for land plots from the company, which contained provisions contravening Belarusian regulations. In March 2011 the Homel Regional Executive Committee sent a letter to the Iranian company to assure it of a favourable decision on its suggestions with regard to a fixed lease rate for 50 years.
"There has yet been neither reply nor action from the Iranian company, which does not contribute to the implementation of the investment project," said Dvornik. The regional government is now looking for new investors for the plant.
CITIC invests in Belarus upgrade
06 June 2012Belarus: A new dry 1.8Mt/yr cement line has been commissioned at Kostyukovichi in Belarus. Architecture and Construction Minister Anatoly Nichkasov presided over the opening ceremony for the joint Belarusian and Chinese project, which was constructed by the Chinese company CITIC Construction. Director of OAO Belarusian Cement Plant Vladimir Kiselev said that the launch of a further cement manufacturing line in July 2012 would raise domestic output to 3Mt/yr. He also noted that it would create 154 new jobs.
Since 2007 CITIC has been implementing an investment programme in Belarus to modernise cement mills and manufacturing lines, including building three new cement mills and modernising the power supply for three existing ones. In April 2012 a cement line was commissioned at OAO Krasnoselskstroimaterialy with a capacity of 1.8Mt/yr. OAO Krichevtsementnoshifer will have a similar line to be completed by 1 July 2012. Loans from China Export and Import Bank are the main source of funding.