Displaying items by tag: Cemex
Cement antitrust case ‘not conclusive’
05 August 2015Europe: The European Commission has decided to close an antitrust investigation opened in December 2010 against a number of European cement manufacturers including Cemex, Holcim and HeidelbergCement, according to Construction Europe.
Originally the cement companies were suspected by the EC of colluding with rivals to fix prices in Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Spain and the UK. The commission said that there had been indications suggesting possible import/export restrictions, market sharing, price co-ordination and information exchanges in the markets for cement and related products. It said that inspections had been carried out in November 2008 and September 2009 at the premises of companies in Germany, France, the UK, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy, Luxembourg and Spain.
The EC has now said that the evidence obtained in its investigation 'was not sufficiently conclusive to confirm these initial concerns,' adding 'the commission will continue to monitor closely developments in the European cement markets.'
The alleged cartel was said to have colluded in market sharing and price fixing in the markets for cement and cement-based materials such as ready-mix concrete, clinker, aggregates, blast-furnace slag, granulated blast-furnace slag, ground granulated blast-furnace slag and fly ash.
Cemex completes refinancing of bank debt
04 August 2015Mexico: Cemex has completed the refinancing of a bank loan agreement, paying off the remnants of what was originally a US$15bn debt refinancing at the height of the 2009 global crisis, according to Dow Jones.
Cemex said that it paid ahead of time the remaining US$1.94bn of a 2012 accord, using funds from 17 financial institutions that joined others in a refinancing deal reached about a year ago. The amount owed under the new credit agreement now stands at around US$3.79bn, including Euro620m (US$681m) and the rest in US Dollars.
"We have now consolidated our syndicated bank debt in a single agreement under improved conditions that better reflect our financial metrics. We are pleased with the interest shown by the bank market in this transaction and the continued support of our lenders," said CFO José Antonio González. With the latest refinancing, Cemex's only significant debt payments in the next two years are US$352m in convertible notes due in March 2016 and a US$373m principal payment in September 2017 on the existing bank loan agreement.
Cemex refinanced around US$15bn in bank debt during the 2009 global crisis, when the company's earnings fell and put payment of its heavy debt load at risk. In 2012, with about half of the amount left to pay, Cemex rescheduled around US$6bn and has since carried out further refinancings to lower the cost and extend the maturity of its debt. Cemex's total debt at the end of June 2015 stood at US$15.9bn, down from US$17.1bn a year earlier.
Cemex reports sales growth in 2015
23 July 2015Mexico: Cemex's consolidated net sales in the second quarter of 2015 grew by 5% year-on-year on a like-for-like basis for ongoing operations and adjusting for currency fluctuations to US$3.8bn. Its operating earnings before income, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 1% during the quarter to US$744m. On a like-for-like basis, operating EBITDA increased by 13%.
The increase in consolidated net sales on a like-for-like basis was due to higher product prices in local currency terms in most of its operations, as well as improved volumes in most of its products in Mexico, the US, and the northern Europe and Asia regions.
Cemex's net sales in Mexico decreased by 9% in the second quarter of 2015 to US$745m while its operating EBITDA increased by 4% to US$256m. In the US, its net sales grew by 5% year-on-year to US$1.01bn and its operating EBITDA increased by 31% to US$156m. In northern Europe, net sales for the second quarter of 2015 fell by 21% to US$904m and its operating EBITDA fell by 8% year-on-year to US$111m. In the Mediterranean region its net sales fell by 9% to US$409m as its Operating EBITDA fell by 25% to US$75m. Cemex's net sales from operations in South, Central America and the Caribbean fell by 8% year-on-year to US$517m and its operating EBITDA fell by 10% to US$160m. In Asia, net sales grew by 11% year-on-year to US$177m and operating EBITDA was up by 34% year-on-year to US$45m.
"We are pleased with our results. Our controlling interest net income during the quarter was the highest in six years. In addition, our operating EBITDA grew by 13% on a like-fir-like basis. This is the third quarter with double-digit, like-for-like growth in EBITDA," said Fernando A Gonzalez, Cemex CEO.
Colombia: Cemex Latam Holdings' consolidated net sales fell by 11% year-on-year US$394m during the second quarter of 2015. The decline was attributed to currency fluctuations and lower sales. Operating earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA), also adjusted for the currency fluctuations, increased by 2% year-on-year during the second quarter of 2015.
Operating EBITDA in Colombia decreased by 23% year-on-year to US$68m in the second quarter of 2015, with a 24% decline in net sales to US$198m. Adjusting for currency fluctuations, EBITDA in Colombia grew by 2% year-on-year. Consolidated cement volumes decreased by 3%, while ready-mix and aggregates volumes increased by 6% and 3%, respectively. In Panama, operating EBITDA fell by 3% to US$33m during the quarter and net sales grew by 9% to US$79m. Cement, ready-mix and aggregates volumes increased by 4%, 10% and 21%, respectively, year-on-year. In Costa Rica, operating EBITDA grew by 5% year-on-year to US$20m and net sales increased by 15% to US$46m. Volumes for the three main products grew at double-digit rates during both the second quarter and the first half of 2015. In the rest of Cemex Latam Holdings' region, net sales during the quarter reached US$76m and operating EBITDA fell by 7% year-on-year to US$20m.
In the first six months of 2015, Cemex Latam Holdings'cement volumes declined by 11%, while ready-mix and aggregates volumes increased by 4% and 2%, respectively. Compared with the first quarter of 2015, cement, ready-mix and aggregates volumes increased by 11%, 8% and 6%, respectively.
"We are pleased with the continued positive volume performance of our operations in Panama, Costa Rica and Nicaragua, where we are improving our volume guidance for the year. Additionally, our cement volumes in Colombia increased by 11% during the quarter compared with the first quarter of 2015," said Carlos Jacks, CEO of Cemex Latam Holdings.
"This year our priority is to continue working persistently towards improving our profitability, which has been affected by the depreciation of the Colombian Peso. Additionally, we continue to evolve as a company into a more customer-centric organisation, offering differentiated construction solutions to our specific customer segments."
Cemex plans to invest US$6m to boost production
14 July 2015Dominican Republic: According to Esmerk Latin American News, Cemex Dominicana plans to invest US$5.96m to expand the packaging and palletising capacity at its plant in San Pedro de Macoris. The investment includes a new cement packaging line that will increase its capacity by an additional 1.5m bags per month, reaching a capacity of 2.4Mt/yr. Cemex also intends to expand its cement milling capacity over the next few months and build a new facility for cement loading.
Cemex to save Euro7.38m thanks to Holcim acquisition
13 July 2015Czech Republic: According to CIA Daily News, Cemex's acquisition of Holcim in the Czech Republic is expected to save Cemex Euro7.38m. Cemex plans to invest Euro3.69m into the integration of management systems. One of the largest investments currently planned is the modernisation of the Prachovice cement plant.
Switzerland: According to Splash24/7, Italian ship-owners Giovanni and Vincenzo Romeo have ordered a new 6700t cement carrier with delivery scheduled for 2017. The ship-building contract was signed with Ningbo Xinle shipyard in China and is worth US$10 - 15m.
Originally from Naples, Italy, the Romeo family moved almost all of its shipping activities to Switzerland in 2010, where its Nova Marine Carriers shipping company is now based. Romeo Group historically has very close business relations with steel producers Duferco and cement producer Italcementi, but also regularly does business with other cement producers such as Lafarge, Holcim, Cemex and HeidelbergCement. Romeo's Nova Marine operates a fleet of some 40 bulk carriers, which includes five cement carriers and three self-unloaders.
Cemex to expand social responsibility schemes
03 July 2015South America/Asia: Mexican cement company Cemex has confirmed plans to expand its social responsibility programme to Guatemala, Bangladesh and the Philippines by 2016. The firm intends to installed self-employment production centres (CPA) in these countries to help low-income families renovate their houses.
The initiative, developed in collaboration with authorities and non-governmental organisations, provides construction training and teaches how to manufacture concrete blocks. Half of the production obtained at these centres is used in the construction or renovation of the participants' houses and the other half is bought by local governments to develop infrastructure projects. The income achieved by the initiative is then reinvested by Cemex in the centres.
Cemex already operates 80 CPAs in Mexico and expects to open 20 additional centres in 2015. It has also developed the initiative in Colombia since 2010.
Colombia: Cemex Latam Holdings, the Latin American arm of Mexico's Cemex, has reported unfavourable results in the first quarter of 2015 in Colombia and said that its stocks have been affected, despite the fact that the region turned towards infrastructure improvement projects. As the company's share value in Pesos has dropped by 30% and it has recorded another 35% decline due to depreciation, Cemex Latam Holdings' value in US Dollars is 70% lower.
Company president Carlos Jacks has attributed the poor results in January - March 2015 to the 25% depreciation against the US Dollar, as well as the fact that its 31% growth in 2014 was far higher than the industry average. Another factor was the decision that Colombia should return or generate the same cash flow or the same amount of US Dollars before the depreciation and so it raised its prices, thinking that there would not be a reversal of the exchange rate.
Cemex Latam Holdings will work to recover the price in June 2015 and Jacks feels more confident about the second half of the year. Better sales volumes are expected if its efforts are successful. The company hopes that its local division will return to levels prior to the depreciation of the exchange rate in terms of its cash flow in US Dollars as a result. The business anticipates some momentum in housing programmes over 2016, as well as participation in the first wave of 4G motorway projects and possibly the second wave towards the close of 2015. It projects that around US$5bn/yr will be spent on cement, or US$500m each, while the projects will require some 3.50Mt of cement. The entire market consumes 13Mt/yr of cement. Cemex Latam Holdings will invest around US$180m in 2015 and the funds will mainly be used to expand the production capacity at its plant in Maceo, Colombia or premises in Monterrey, Mexico.
Israel/Palestine: Norwegian insurance giant KLP Kapitalforvaltning has divested two international building material companies, HeidelbergCement and Cemex, from its investment portfolio because of their operations in the West Bank.
According to news agency Haaretz, KLP divested its shares effectively on 1 June 2015, citing international law as set in the Hague and Geneva conventions. Haaretz added that the move is part of KLP's half-yearly review of companies in its portfolio. HeidelbergCement and Cemex acquired companies with Israeli subsidiaries operating quarries in Area C, West Bank, which is under complete Israeli civilian and military control as defined by the Oslo accords. KLP also excluded five more companies because of their income from coal-based operations, one for corruption, one for severe environmental damage and one for the production of tobacco.
"The extraction of non-renewable resources in occupied territory may weaken the future income potential of the local population, including the Palestinian residents. Moreover, when this is undertaken in a way that is difficult to justify within the requirements of the law of belligerent occupation, KLP considers that this activity represents an unacceptable risk of violating fundamental ethical norms," said KLP in a statement.