Displaying items by tag: Ghana

Ghana: George Dawson-Ahmoah, the chairman of the Cement Manufacturers Association of Ghana (CMAG), says that Nigeria is dumping cement in his country. He cited instances of imports of bagged cement from Nigeria, under the guise of the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme (ETLS), as disturbing pricing in the market, in an interview with the Business and Financial Times newspaper. Although Dawson-Ahmoah defended the ECOWAS scheme he raised issues such as evidence of dumping and export subsidies as being a threat to local cement producers.

Speaking at an annual industry association meeting he alleged that cement imports from Nigeria are being sold in the country for less than its value in the originating country in violation of World Trade Organisation rules. He also criticised the local Export Expansion Grant subsidy.

Ghana: President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has laid the foundation stone for a new cement plant in the Tema Free Zones near Accra. The US$55m grinding plant, to be operated by CBI Ghana, will take a year to complete. It will produce and supply premium cement under the brand name Supacem. The company is expected to employ some 400 staff when it commences operations.

In remarks before the ground-breaking ceremony, the President said that his government would continue to provide regulatory support and ensure a business-friendly environment that would engender competitiveness to enable the cement industry to thrive. He said the growing competition in the sector was leading to healthy competition that was benefiting consumers.

With CBI only the latest entrant to the cement sector, President Akufo-Addo was optimistic that the company would diversify the sector, promote healthy competition and further improve product standards. He added that the government was considering the use of concrete for constructing durable roads, envisaging a huge demand for cement in the near future.

Ghana: Ghacem has launched its first ever cement academy and a mobile app that is designed to equip block makers across the country and expand their knowledge regarding cement usage. According to the Commercial Director of Ghacem, Nana Philip Archer, the latest innovation by the company stemmed from three principles; Developing a premium brand, professionalism and the fostering of easy transactions among its stakeholders, especially customers.

“It is not just about producing quality blocks but we want to embark on an educational drive and that is the reason why we have launched the Ghacem Academy,” said Archer. “We are doing this just so we expand the knowledge boundaries of how to use Ghacem cement.”

Ghana: President John Dramani Mahama has inaugurated a 1Mt/yr cement plant in Tema on behalf of Ciments de l'Afrique (CIMAF), a subsidiary of Morocco’s Addoha Group. The project had an investment of Euro60m according to the Ghana News Agency. Construction started in 2014.

Ghana: President John Mahama has inaugurated a US$50m cement grinding plant at Bokro. The unit will have a cement production capacity of 1Mt/yr and will manufacture 42.5R, 42.5N and 32.5 R grades of cement, according to the Ghana News Agency.

"This is a manifestation of how Ghana is harnessing Foreign Direct Investment for economic growth,” said Mahama. He added that complaints by local producers about imports of cement were being examined by the Ministry of Trade and Industry.

Ghana: Dangote Cement has defended its conduct against accusations of tax evasion, dumping and other unfair trade practices by local cement producers. Tor Nygard, managing director of Dangote Cement Ghana, defended the Nigerian company at a press conference in Tema saying that the company's entry into the local market had stabilised the price of cement and strengthened competition, according to the Business and Financial Times newspaper. He also described the attacks by market competitors as ‘smear tactics.’

The Cement Manufacturers Association of Ghana (CMAG), representing local cement producers such as Ghacem and Diamond Cement, lobbied the Ghanaian government in October 2016 calling for a ban on imports of cement.

Nygard dismissed accusations of dumping cement in Ghana from Nigeria and confirmed that the company pays all the relevant taxes on its imports. He added that Ghacem and Diamond Cement employ 3000 workers after 55 years of operation but that Dangote Cement employs 2000 workers in the country after only six years of operation. Finally, he detailed plans for the company’s new US$100m cement grinding plant in Takoradi that is due to be commissioned at the end of 2017.

Nigeria: Dangote Cement’s pre-tax profit has fallen by 10.9% year-on-year to US$466m in the first nine months of 2016 from US$523m in the same period in 2015. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBTIDA) fell by 16.3% to US$559m from US$667m. However, sales revenue rose by 20.9% to US$1.38bn from US$1.14bn. It blamed the drop in profitability on falling prices in Nigeria, negative currency effects and on rising fuel and power costs.

“Nigeria has achieved record volume growth and our non-Nigerian operations are performing well across Africa. Our switch to coal in Nigeria will have an immediate impact on margins now that we have abandoned the use of low pour fuel oil (LPFO), improving fuel security and reducing the need for foreign currency. Furthermore, our new pricing will offset the impact on costs of the devalued Naira,” said the chief executive officer, Onne van der Weijde. He added his company’s strong performance in sales had been hit by poor economies in the countries it operates in and by heavy seasonal rains in West Africa.

The producer reported that its sales volumes of cement sold grew by 28.1% to 11.9Mt in Nigeria and by 72.9% to 6.5Mt elsewhere in Africa. Sales outside of Nigeria were bolstered by production ramp-up in Ethiopia and Zambia, new operations in Tanzania and improved sales in Ghana. Plants in the Republic of Congo and Sierra Leone are due to become operational in mid-November 2016.

Ghana: The Ministry of Trade and Industry has responded to calls by the Cement Manufacturers Association (CMA) that it stop imports of cement by saying that the CMA has misrepresented the role of the Cement Monitoring Committee (CMC) and the process of the licensing regime. The CMA took exception to the issuance of permits by the ministry to three foreign cement producers given that they say the country has a surplus of cement, according to the Ghanaian Chronicle newspaper.

In a statement the Ministry of Trade said no authority or mandate has been given to the CMC to instruct or direct the Minister on which firms should be awarded a license and what that company's specific annual imports should be. It added that the CMC's role is intended to give the ministry and all stakeholders access to relevant information and data for the effective implementation of the relevant legislation. It said that the law does not place a ban on imported cement but rather provides a mechanism, rules and procedures for controlling imports.

It went on to explain that the major reason for granting China’s Fujian Cement a licence to import cement into Ghana was because it was building a cement plant in the country and that the company was attempting to establish itself in the market ahead of local production. Fujian Cement originally asked the ministry to import 1.5Mt/yr of cement into the country but this was restricted to 0.5Mt/yr. The ministry also reinforced that it had not granted any import licenses to Dangote Cement and Sol Cement, the companies accused by the CMA of importing cement.

Ghana: The Cement Manufacturers Association of Ghana (CMAG) has asked the government to investigate all cement imports to the country. The association sent a letter on 6 October 2016 to the Commissioner of the Ghana Revenue Authority (Customs Division) concerning a Chinese vessel carrying 37,000t of cement anchored at Tema, according to the Daily Guide newspaper. The letter, copied to many other government departments, questioned whether licences to import cement to the country could be issued following changes in legislation.

Ghana: Dangote Cement plans to recruit 5000 workers following its procurement of 1000 trucks to distribute its products. The cement producer has started recruiting drivers, truck driver assistants and loaders. The vehicles arrived in Ghana in early July 2016, according to the Lagos Guardian. The drive to build its distribution network complements the company’s on-going efforts to build a 1.5Mt/yr clinker grinding plant in Takoradi.