Displaying items by tag: Egypt

Egypt: Tourah Cement plans to invest US$39.4m to convert its plant to alternative fuels to recover production ability and profitability. Tourah did not make a profit in 2014.

Saudi Arabia: Saudi Arabia's cement producers have again asked the government to lift a three-year-old ban on their exports so they can supply Egypt with 6Mt of cement, according to the chairman of Saudi Arabia's Cement Association.

"We are ready to export 6Mt of our cement surplus to Egypt following the signing of large contracts between that country and global companies this week," said Jihad Al-Rasheed, chairman of the national cement committee in the council of Saudi chambers of commerce and industry. Al-Rasheed said that it was time for Saudi authorities to lift the export ban after the emergence of 'golden' opportunities for the country's cement manufacturers to export their products to nearby Qatar, which needs large quantities of building materials for the planned stadia and other facilities for the FIFA 2022 World Cup. He added that other key markets that need Saudi cement include Kuwait, Bahrain, Sudan, Yemen and Ethiopia.

"Some Saudi cement plants were constructed in border areas with the aim of exporting their products to neighbouring countries, but the export ban has inflicted heavy losses on them and could force them to lay off workers," said Al-Rasheed. He added that cement companies in Saudi Arabia are trying to reduce a surplus of >20Mt by supplying domestic projects. "Most of the local government and private sector projects now have sufficient cement supplies. We want the Saudi government to lift the ban on cement exports in line with international trade rules," said Al-Rasheed.

Saudi Arabia partially lifted the cement export ban in 2009 before enforcing it again in 2012 to ensure enough supplies for domestic projects. According to Al-Rasheed, cement demand in Saudi Arabia stood at around 57.2Mt in 2014 and is projected to grow to nearly 59.5Mt in 2015.

Egypt: Lafarge Egypt and Egyptian holding company Orascom Telecom Media (OTMT) and Technology Holding SAE have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to develop a waste management framework of municipal and agricultural waste.

The memorandum, signed by Lafarge Egypt CEO Hussein Mansi and OTMT deputy CEO and COO Tamer el Mahdy, was created in an effort to process large volumes of municipal and agricultural waste into alternative fuels to be used in the Lafarge plant in Egypt and other companies.

The MOU represents a step towards sustainable development in the country and will begin the creation of a circular economy through the reduction of waste burning and dumping. The agreement will also create new employment opportunities and reduce the dependency on fossil fuels in the country.

Lafarge Cement Egypt has been providing thermal treatment solutions in Egypt for around three years in collaboration with its subsidiary Ecocem Industrial Ecology Egypt, which develops, sources and pre-treats solutions to facilitate the recovery of wastes into alternative fuels. Lafarge Egypt and Ecocem aim to achieve an average fuel substitution rate of 25% by the end of 2015.

Egypt/Ethipopia: ASEC Engineering and Management, a subsidiary of Egypt's Qalaa Holdings, has signed a one-year plant management agreement with Ethiopia's National Cement Share Company.

As per the deal, Asec will provide full technical assistance to National Cement Share Company for the operation and maintenance of the 1Mt/yr capacity cement plant. ASEC will also utilise its know-how and expertise to help National Cement Share Company to boost production volumes, cut production costs and improve product quality. Under the contract, ASEC will also introduce and implement systems for all aspects of production, quality, maintenance, warehousing and human resources, among other areas.

"This is a result of the continued efforts of ASEC Engineering and its ambitious plans to expand its business into Sub-Saharan Africa after its successful contract with Cimento Nacional Company in Mozambique," said ASEC Engineering CEO Khaled El Sebaie.

Egypt: Italcementi plans to upgrade two of its cement plants in 2015 via its Suez Cement subsidiary, following the two plants that it upgraded in 2014, according to Italcementi managing director Bruno Carrè.

"We will invest US$52.4m/yr for four years," said Carrè. "We finished converting two plants two plants in the first year. Now we have another two plants to complete." Italcementi will not disclose any expectations about their investments in 2015, although it expects the market to grow. In January 2015, Carrè said that its 2014 revenues will exceed US$721m, some 20% higher than in 2013, with 2015 revenues projected to grow by 10 - 15%.

Carrè said that the expansion plans are targeting renewable energy in Egpt and the Gulf. He highlighted that 2015 will see the continuation of investments to convert the energy mix and to improve Italcementi's environmental impact to international standards.

Greece: Titan Group has reported a return to profit in 2014 after two loss-making years. The Greece-based cement producer has reported a profit before tax of Euro46.8m up from a loss of Euor9.4 in 2013. Turnover rose by 2.7% to Euro1.16bn from Euro1.13bn. However, earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 2.6% to Euro182m from Euro168m. Titan attributed the turnaround to continuing recovery in the US, improvement in the Greek market and better performance in Turkey and Southeastern Europe. Despite this, gas shortages in Egypt hit results negatively.

By region, Titan Group saw demand for building materials in Greece grow in 2014 due to low levels in 2013 and the re-launch of a road building campaign. The company reported that utilisation rates at its cement plants in Greece depend on exports to countries with low energy costs and no constraints on carbon dioxide emissions. Total turnover for the Group's Greece and Western Europe region in 2014 increased by 14% to Euro285m. In Southeastern Europe construction activity remained subdued. Turnover fell by 3.5% to Euro208m in 2014.

The US led turnover, supplying over one-third of the Group's total turnover. Sales were led by high growth rates in Florida. Turnover rose by 14% to Euro469m in 2014. In Egypt cement demand grew by 2.4% in 2014 but gas shortages and permit application delays for alternative fuels reduced production and shrunk plant utilisation rates below 50%. Turnover fell by 22% to Euro197m although imports helped cushion profit margins.

Development activities in 2014 saw an investment in solid and alternative fuels particularly in Egypt. The first solid fuels grinding mill was brought on stream at the Beni Suef cement plant at the end of 2014.

Egypt: FLSmidth has received two contracts from the Egyptian cement producer Misr Cement Company in Qena for the supply of equipment for a cement plant which was originally supplied by FLSmidth. The equipment to be supplied includes among others an ATOX coal mill, an OK vertical cement mill, Pfister weighing and dosing systems, MAAG Gear reducers and Airtech filters.

"We are very happy to supply this additional equipment to an existing customer with whom we have co-operated since 1999. Our newly established Products & Upgrades group will be responsible for supplying the equipment - an offering which we are currently expanding," commented President of the FLSmidth Cement Division Per Mejnert Kristensen.

Egypt: For the fourth quarter of 2014, Suez Cement reported a 2.5% year-on-year increase in revenues and 11.5% year-on-year growth in earnings before interest, tax and depreciation (EBITDA). Its net profit after non-controlling interests increased by 15.2% during the quarter.

For the entirety of 2014, Suez Cement's sales increased by 22%, while recurring EBITDA improved by 8.8% compared to 2013. However, higher corporate income taxes coupled with an absence of foreign exchange gains were responsible for an 8.4% drop in net profit after non-controlling interests. EBITDA gains were also driven by Suez Cement's downstream activities in transportation and ready-mix cements, as well as its paper bags subsidiary, which saw an EBITA increase of 26.5%. Cement activities accounted for a gain of 6.3%.

The strong revenue performance was largely due to cement price increases due to an unprecedented surge in production costs and product shortages. Overall, clinker production decreased as a result of severe energy supply issues that impacted each of Suez Cement's plants and subsidiaries differently. The Tourah plant felt the greatest pressure from expensive clinker imports that were necessary to satisfy Egypt's growing demand.

Suez Cement was also negatively affected by energy costs (gas, mazut and electricity) that rose by 25 - 35% in 2014. It did not let the economic pressures, including a 40% drop in industrial production capacity, impact its employment rates or benefits packages. This was partially due to Suez Cement's commitment to the implementation of energy-efficient processes throughout the five plants, as well as further emphasis and utilisation of alternative fuels, which helped mitigate the drop in production as well as limit the impact from growing clinker imports. Suez Cement will go ahead with the deployment of coal power at all five plants over the next two years, a factor that is also expected to put a stop to some importing activities.

Suez Cement believes that the construction industry's recovery will continue to attract new investment. This is in addition to positive economic growth thanks to Egypt's new-found government stability and the future implementation of several large national projects. However, power cuts and fuel shortages are likely to remain major issues for cement producers. Fuel and energy shortages will also prolong challenges to meeting cement production targets.

The recent closure of the Tourah I plant is one example of Suez Cement's continued commitment to reducing its environmental impact. The company remains focused on investing in energy-efficient initiatives and environmentally-sound programs. This includes developing alternative fuel strategies that incorporate waste-derived fuels and coal, which will shift the company's energy mix and improve its production capabilities by reducing dependence on natural gas and mazut.

Egypt: The Supreme Administrative Court has decided to pause an investigation into the appeal against the privatisation of Beni Suef Cement Company.

The court ordered the reinstatement of workers to the company, but decided to suspend looking into the appeal of the privatisation. The suspension is pending another court decision in a case questioning the constitutionality of a law issued in 2014, which bans third parties from challenging sales or investment contracts signed between the government and investors.

The law in question stipulates that courts must suspend viewing appeals of contracts, even if the cases were brought to court prior to the issuance of the law. The law was approved in April 2014 by former interim president Adli Mansour and was heavily criticised by the Egyptian Centre for Social and Economic Rights (ECESR) for its issuance. The ECESR said that the law 'wastes the rights of citizens and workers from detecting suspicions of corruption' in contracts.

The controversy over Beni Suef Cement is more than a decade old. The plant, which has an annual production capacity of 1.5Mt/yr, was sold in 1999 and was then owned as a joint venture project by Lafarge and Titan. In 2002, Titan acquired the shares owned by Lafarge and has since wholly-owned the plant.

In February 2014, an administrative court ruled in favour of the privatisation but ordered reinstating the workers, as stipulated in the sales contract. The court ruling was appealed by the workers, who want the privatisation to be reversed and by company officials, who do not want to bear the costs of reinstating the workers.

Egypt: Four workers were killed and at least 35 others were injured on 27 December 2014 when a scaffold collapsed in the Sinai Cement plant in central Sinai. Sinai Cement denied that it had a connection with the accident in a statement.