Displaying items by tag: GCW166
ARVOS Group becomes a standalone corporation from Alstom with Triton as new shareholder
02 September 2014Germany: ARVOS Group, the former Alstom Auxiliary Components business, has become a standalone corporation with Triton as its new shareholder. ARVOS Group is a global manufacturer of regenerative heat exchangers for thermal power generation facilities, process critical applications in the chemical and petrochemical industry and grinding mills. Over the course of the transition, the company's headquarters will be relocated from Mannheim, Germany to Heidelberg, Germany.
"As a standalone company, we are able to focus more effectively on strengthening our global market and technology leadership position in order to enhance thermal power plants through sustainable energy efficiency and the chemical industry through innovation," said ARVOS Group CEO, Thorsten Holl.
China to construct a cement plant in Kyrgyzstan
01 September 2014Kyrgyzstan: A ground-breaking ceremony was held on 29 August 2014 at the site of a new cement plant in Kemin, Chui Province, about 13km east of the Kyrgyz capital, Bishkek. The plant, which is being constructed by Chinese investment, will cost around US$70m, according to Sun He, business counsellor with the Chinese Embassy in Kyrgyzstan.
Kyrgyz first vice prime minister Tayirbek Sarpashev said that he was confident that the cement plant would bring more jobs to Kemin and bring about tax revenues of between US$10m and US$15m each year upon completion.
Zhu Rongjun, general manager of ZETH-Cement, the Chinese investment subsidiary that is registered in Kyrgyzstan and the investor of the new cement plant, said that it would use advanced technology for production at the plant. Zhu added that the plant would start formal construction in 2014 and be completed and put into production within 15 months.
YTL profit up on cement sector in 2014 fiscal year
29 August 2014Malaysia: The net profit of YTL Corp, which operates in the cement, property and other sectors, increased by 2.6% to US$107m in the fourth quarter of its 2014 fiscal year, which ended on 30 June 2014. Revenue, however, fell by 9.6% to US$1.44bn.
For the full year to 30 June 2014, YTL's net profit rose by 20.8% to US$490m from US$400m. Revenue slipped over the year to US$6bn from US$6.33m in the 2013 fiscal year.
"Our cement, property development and investment and hotel divisions all registered good growth," said group managing director Tan Sri Francis Yeoh Sock Ping in a statement. Yeoh said the jump in net profit was mainly due to improvements in the group's cement business, along with its property and hospitality businesses.
Ramco Cement to set up new plant in Andhra Pradesh
28 August 2014India: Ramco Cement has announced that it intends to construct a cement factory at Kilimigundla in Kurnool District, Andhra Pradesh at a cost of US$250m. The total investment in the cement plant and related infrastructure could go up to US$500m, as the development will require a 20km rail line to facilitate transport.
Ramco has requested that the State Chief Minister provide necessary land to develop the plant and also facilitate necessary clearances to develop the rail line, which Ramco claims would also be useful for other projects in the area.
Meanwhile, Ramco has indicated that its new plant near Visakhapatnam will also be ready for commissioning by 15 October 2014.
Malaysia: Scientists have discovered a new snail species on a limestone hill known as Kanthan in Malaysia. They have named the species, which is only 2-3mm in diameter, 'Charopa lafargei,' after Lafarge Malaysia, the cement producer that owns the hill.
As Kanthan is the only place that this species has been observed, Charopa lafargei was immediately classed as 'critically endangered' in the IUCN Red List for Endangered Species. This means that its future is effectively in the hands of Lafarge, which purchased the hill to make cement. The scientists decided to name the snail after Lafarge for this reason, although it is not clear if or how the name will affect the future actions of the producer.
"I'm not aware of a species threatened with extinction that has been given the name of the company that can determine whether it goes extinct or survives," said Tony Whitten from Fauna & Flora International.
The new snail is not the only endemic species found on the hill. Kanthan is also home to nine plant species that are on Malaysia's Red List of Endangered Plants. One critically endangered spider, one gecko and two other snails that are also found only on Kanthan.
Apodi to invest in new Sergipe plant
28 August 2014Brazil: Apodi, owned by entrepreneurs Ivens Dias Branco (68%) and Juscelino Sarkis (32%), is to invest US$444m to set up a cement plant in the Brazilian state of Sergipe. It reportedly anticipates that the move will reinforce its stronghold in the north east of the country.
The new unit will have capacity for 5000t/day, adding to Apodi's two plants in Pecem and Quixada, Ceara state and expanding the company capacity to 10,000t/day in total.
Usje sees net profit up by 28%
28 August 2014Macedonia: Usje, part of Greece's Titan Cement, has announced that its net profit rose to Euro12.8m in the first half of 2014, a 28% improvement year-on-year compared to the first half of 2013. Usje's operating revenue increased by 15% to Euro32.5m in the same period, while operating costs rose by 5% to Euro21.2m.