
Displaying items by tag: Deal
Belarus: The Belarusian Cement Company and Eurocement Group have signed a contract concerning deliveries of cement in 2017. In line with the agreement the deliveries will satisfy the demand for Belarusian cement on the Russian market. The deliveries in 2017 will be at least as large as in 2016, according to the Belarusian Telegraph Agency. The deal was signed by Eurocement Group President Mikhail Skorokhod, Director General of Belarusian Cement Plant Igor Lozhechnikov and Director General of Krichevcementnoshifer Vladimir Korchevsky.
Belarusian Architecture and Construction Minister Anatoly Cherny said that the Russian market is the key target market for Belarusian cement producers. He added that despite falling demand in Russia that the share of Belarusian cement on Russian Federation markets would grow larger.
Telangana state government signs deal for 2.7Mt of cement
25 November 2016India: The Telangana state government has signed an agreement with 32 cement companies to procure 2.73Mt of cement to build residential housing. The government plans to build 260,000 double-bedroom houses for disadvantaged residents in the state, according to the Indo-Asian News Service. The Telangana Housing Corporation will implement the scheme.
FLSmidth and NHI Group sign joint-venture agreement for mining equipment
28 September 2016China: FLSmidth and Northern Heavy Industries Group (NHI Group), based in Shenyang, have signed an agreement to enter into a joint-venture, with an equal amount of shares, for the design and supply of mining equipment targeting the mid-market segment. The joint venture will be established with its own board of directors and management under the name NHI-Fuller (Shenyang) Mining (NHI-Fuller), which will financially report results as part of the Minerals Division in FLSmidth. Subject to obtaining regulatory approval, it is anticipated that NHI-Fuller will be operational in the first quarter of 2017.
"In 2014, we announced that part of our strategy in the Minerals Division was to enter the expanding mid-market for mining equipment. With the NHI Group, we have now found a perfect industrial partner for this quest," said Group Executive Vice President of the Minerals Division in FLSmidth, Manfred Schaffer.
The NHI-Fuller products will be designed for the needs of mid-market or capital expenditure sensitive customers in the mining industry and will be marketed under the NHI-Fuller brand name. While the initial focus will be to supply crushing products, the goal of the joint venture will be to become the leading mid-market mining equipment supplier for other product lines as well.
Hima Cement signs cement supply deal with Guangzhou Dongsong
15 September 2016Uganda: Hima Cement has signed a memorandum of understanding with Guangzhou Dongsong Energy Group Company for the supply of over 40,000t of cement. The deal is to support the construction of industrial projects on an industrial park in Sukulu, according to the Kampala Observer. Guangzhou Dongsong Energy Group is a Chinese company that holds a lease to mine and process phosphates in Sukulu, Tororo district.
"The purpose of this memorandum of understanding is to establish the relationship between Hima and Guangzhou Dongsong. This cooperation of both parties shall cover the project of construction of the phosphate plant and steel plant, and any other projects within the Sukulu industrial park," said Daniel Pettersson, the chief executive officer of Hima Cement Uganda. Hima Cement also hopes to be able to purchase slag from the steel plant once it is built.
Hear Nirma roar!
13 July 2016Another week and another massive Indian cement industry deal. This week Nirma has won the bidding for the assets of Lafarge India that LafargeHolcim is selling. Before we get too carried away though, the diversified conglomerate entered into a letter agreement with LafargeHolcim on 7 July 2016 to pay US$1.4bn for three cement plants and two grinding plants with a total cement production capacity of 11Mt/yr.
It is worth noting that this is only a letter agreement. LafargeHolcim signed one previously with Birla Corporation for some of the same assets in August 2015. Unfortunately, an ambiguous amendment to the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) (MMDR) Act struck in January 2015 made it unclear how easily mineral rights could be transferred with an industrial plant sale. After much likely internal squabbling Lafarge India said it was selling all of its assets in January 2016 followed by threats of legal action by Birla.
Some commentators in the Indian media have flagged the new deal as expensive for Nirma. It will be paying US$127/t for the new capacity compared to the US$118/t that UltraTech Cement is offering Jaiprakash Associates for its laboured deal. The Nirma deal comprises integrated cement plants at Sonadih in Chattisgarh, Arasmeta in Chattisgarh and Chittorgarh in Rajasthan, and cement grinding plants at Jojobera in Jharkhand and Mejia, West Bengal. Other assets include 63 ready mix concrete plants, two aggregate plants and a blending unit.
However, unlike UltraTech, Nirma is a relatively new entrant in the cement industry. Its main industries are in detergents and soda ash manufacture. It invested US$194m in a 2.28Mt/yr cement plant in Rajasthan that was commissioned in November 2014. It also ran into environmental issues over a proposal to build a new cement plant at Mahuva in Gujarat. One report compiled under request by the Indian Supreme Court in 2011 cited the presence of Asiatic lions as a reason for concern!
Lions aside, Nirma may be paying over the odds for its new cement business but it will gain a bigger presence in the industry quickly and diversify from its other existing industries in which it faces fierce competition. The Lafarge India plants are mostly in eastern Indian states compared to Nirma’s plant in Rajasthan in the west, giving it a reasonable geographic spread.
Nirma reportedly plans to finance the purchase through a leveraged buyout and the Mint business newspaper has described this as the largest transaction of its kind in India to date. The risk here will be how the Indian cement market plays out in the short term. LafargeHolcim reported that its cement volumes fell in 2015, although this has since picked up in the first half of 2016. UltraTech did better in its 2015 – 2016 financial year but it reported a slow construction market. Longer-term demographic trends suggest that the cement industry will grow, especially in the east of the country. With this in mind it may be a while before Nirma’s cement business roars.
Syria: LafargeHolcim has dodged accusations by La Monde that Lafarge entered into deals with armed groups in Syria, including Islamic State (IS), to protect its business interests in the country. In a statement LafargeHolcim said that its first priority was the safety and security of its employees at its Jalabiyeh cement plant before it eventually closed the plant. It did not deny the accusations.
Le Monde reported it had seen letters sent by Lafarge managers in Syria revealing arrangements that Lafarge made with the jihadist group to continue production until 19 September 2014 and to arrange access for staff and supplies. The French newspaper also alleges that Lafarge bought licences from and paid taxes to IS middle-men and oil traders.
Lafarge operated the 3Mt/yr Jalabiyeh cement plant from 2010 to 2014. In September 2014, Lafarge stopped operating the plant. After that, all employees were evacuated, put on paid leave and were no longer allowed to access the plant. In December 2014 Lafarge decided to terminate all employee contracts, and where possible, transfer employees to other parts of the group.
Ireland: Quinn Cement and the Warrenpoint Harbour Authority (WHA) have signed contracts to build five cement silos at Warrenpoint Harbour with a total storage capacity of 7500t dedicated to the export of bulk cement from Quinn Cement to the UK market. The 10-year deal will see WHA invest Euro3.2m into the project. Work on the project is due to commence immediately, with completion expected in September 2016.
"This is a very significant development for the business, which will allow us to provide an even stronger service offering to our UK customers as well as creating additional local job-opportunities servicing the growing UK construction sector,” said Liam McCaffrey, CEO of Quinn Industrial Holdings Limited, the holding Company for Quinn Cement.
Quinn Cement is currently in the process of extending its storage and distribution centre at Crown Wharf in Rochester, UK where it is constructing two additional storage silos to bring its total capacity at Rochester to 7400t. Construction of that extension is due to be completed at the end of March 2016. Additionally, Quinn Cement is in discussions with regard to setting up a second import facility on the UK mainland.
Jamaica: The Caribbean Cement Company and the Venezuelan government are close to a supply agreement for approximately 340,000t of clinker. The deal is valued at about US$29m, according to the Jamaican government. The clinker will be used by Venezuela as part of an initiative to build two million homes over a seven-year span to address a housing shortage.
India: Energy management firm Schneider Electric has entered into a strategic partnership with industrial software developer Ramco Systems. The partnership will see Ramco's process optimisation software, OPTIMA, become a part of Schneider Electric's solutions for the cement industry. The partnership is intended to offer cement producers products that optimise production processes by reducing energy and emissions focusing on kiln and mill operation.
"The combined offer of process control, expert system and energy management allows the deployment of a unique optimisation strategy. This strategy will ensure optimum consumption of resources, best use of assets, maintain quality of product and stabilise processes while building an environmentally-sustainable business," said Mining, Minerals and Metals Solution President, Schneider Electric, Diego Areces.
OPTIMA is an process optimisation solution that has been designed to improve plant productivity and efficiency and leverages technologies like fuzzy logic, regression analysis and artificial intelligence techniques.
BUA Cement signs with Nigerian Gas Company
09 April 2014Nigeria: BUA Cement has signed a gas sales and purchase agreement with the Nigerian Gas Company for its subsidiary, the Edo Cement Company. The agreement is for the supply of about 0.9Mm3/day to the Edo cement plant in Okpella, according to managing director Saidu Mohammed.
BUA Group entered the cement industry in 2008 when the Federal Government of Nigeria issued cement import licenses to 13 companies, including BUA, in an effort to bring down its price locally. BUA Cement subsequently purchased a floating cement terminal in 2008 for processing and bagging bulk cement. In 2009 BUA acquired controlling stakes in the Cement Company of Northern Nigeria (Sokoto Cement) and the Edo Cement Company.