Displaying items by tag: India
Reliance Infrastructure might sell Reliance Cement
13 March 2015India: Reliance Infrastructure, part of Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group, has decided to sell its cement business, Reliance Cement, to fund the acquisition of Pipavav Defence and Offshore Engineering, which it is acquiring for US$331m.
Reliance Cement is in talks with HeidelbergCement and Italcementi and has offered a 50% stake in the company. The prospective joint venture partner will also fund the company's cement capacity expansion, which is estimated to rise to 15Mt/yr by 2018. Details of the valuation of the possible deal are unknown. HeidelbergCement has operations in Damoh in Madhya Pradesh, Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh and Ammasandra in Karnataka. Italcementi is active in India via Zuari Cement.
Reliance Cement has a 5Mt/yr capacity cement plant in Maihar, Madhya Pradesh. As part of its expansion plan, it is setting up another 5Mt/yr plant in Maharashtra, which is set to be operational by 2017. It is also planning another 5Mt/yr of capacity to be operational by 2018, via a second line in Madhya Pradesh, a new plant in Karnataka or a new plant in Rajasthan.
India: The Indian government has published a list of 36 companies committed to supplying 9.5Mt of cement in 2015 for road building. The cement will be sold at a price below market rates with a fixed upper limit of US$2.70/bag. The Ministry has decided to build concrete cement roads in place of traditional bitumen roads as it views them as cost-effective and requiring less maintenance.
"After taking consent of the manufacturers we have put the list on a dedicated website, which any company or government agency can access to book their orders. Since the factories are spread all over the country, they can make the best choice. As per the contract, manufacturers can only reduce the price and increase their commitment to supply more cement," said road transport minister Nitin Gadkari. "Once the reduced price is out, it will have effect on other manufacturers and prices across companies may fall," he added.
Five new cement plants due for Jaipur
09 March 2015India: Five new cement plants will be set up in Jaipur with an estimated investment of US$1.59bn. The mines department has issued a letter of intent (LOI) to the companies and submitted the application for approval from the Union government.
Three LOI have been given for blocks at Chittorgarh, while two are issued for the blocks in Jaisalmer. The proposals of all the five blocks have been sent to Geological Survey of India (GSI). After receiving approval from them, all companies will be allowed to start their plants.
"There are a total of four LOI that have been given, while one company has been given the old block after orders from the court. It is now up to the Union government to decide. Once permissions are granted, all of the companies can work at their identified places," said an official from the mines department.
According to the officials, nearly US$1.59bn will be invested in the plants, generating employment for more than 5000 people. The state government will receive royalty from the blocks leased for mining. Meanwhile, total production capacity of the new plants is likely to be nearly 3Mt/yr. "The investments will be US$1.44 - 1.59bn. The department will get US$5.59m per plant as royalty," added the official.
India: AA Energy has commissioned a 120t/day grinding plant at Wadsa, Gadchiroli, Maharashtra. The estimated cost of the project is US$8.88m. The cement produced will be used for captive consumption for AA Energy's asbestos sheet plant in Nagpur. AA Energy has also abandoned an expansion of its biomass power plant in the same location due to non-receipt of a No Objection Certificate from the Pollution Control Board.
India: Jaiprakash Associates is planning an integrated cement plant project in Dalla, Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh. The project includes a 2.20Mt/yr clinker plant and a 1.50Mt/yr grinding plant. The site currently has a 2Mt/yr clinker plant, a 500,000t/yr grinding plant, a 27MW power plant and six captive limestone mines. The project is waiting for environmental clearance.
Rain Cement to develop 7MW waste heat recovery system
03 March 2015India: The board of directors of Rain Commodities Ltd has given the go ahead to a proposal to develop a 7MW waste heat recovery (WHR) system at Rain Cement's plant in Boincheruvupalli Village, Kurnool District, Andhra Pradesh.
The power plant will produce up to 7MW of gross electrical energy from the waste heat and flue gases produced during the cement manufacturing process at a project cost of US$11.3m. The project that will be funded by internal accruals and bank loans and is expected to be completed in about 14 months.
Shree Cement commissions cement plant in Chhattisgarh
02 March 2015India: Shree Cement has commissioned a 2.6Mt/yr capacity grinding plant at Baloda Bazar near Raipur, Chhattisgarh.
Cement manufacturing cost to increase by US$0.11 – 0.16/bag
27 February 2015India: The manufacturing cost for cement is likely to go up by US$0.11 – 0.16/bag due to the proposed freight hike on various inputs and the cement itself. "The cost of production will go up in the range between US$0.11 – 0.16/bag," said a cement company spokesperson. He added that cement producers would most likely pass on the costs to their customers.
The Railway Budget proposals plan to increase freight rates of coal and slag, used in the manufacturing of cement, by US$0.74/t and by US$0.34/t respectively. A hike in cement freight rates of US$0.34/t has also been proposed, however, a reduced freight on limestone, by US$0.04/t, is also in the proposal.
"The freight rate hike is likely to increase our cost of production in the range between US$0.03 – 0.06/t. However, price is determined by demand and supply," said Mahendra Singhi, whole-time director of Dalmia Bharat Cement. Jaypee Cement's whole-time director Shiva Dixit said that although the freight rate hike would have an impact on input prices, they would wait for the main Budget to see the cost implication.
Dalmia Cement increases its stake in OCL India to 74.6% for US$165m
26 February 2015India: Dalmia Cement has raised its stake holding in OCL India from 48% to 74.6% through an inter-se share transfer within the promoter group. It acquired a 4.13% stake from Mridu Hari Dalmia and a 22.45% stake from Mridu Hari Dalmia Parivar Trust at a share price of US$10.9 though open market transactions. The deal is worth US$165m. Since the deal involves inter-se transfer, it will not trigger an open offer for OCL India, despite breaching the creeping acquisition limit of a listed firm.
As part of consolidation and growth of the cement sector, Dalmia Bharat Group has been strategically acquiring assets and creating new assets in southern, eastern and northeastern India. OCL India has plants in Odisha and West Bengal. With Dalmia Cement increasing its stake in OCL India, Dalmia group will have 48% of its capacity in south India and the remaining 52% in east and northeast India.
"The move will help to create better operational synergies. It is a step forward in the commitment towards aligning all stakeholders' interests and overall value creations," said Dalmia Bharat. Dalmia Group expects to have a total capacity of 24Mt/yr in the 2015 – 2016 financial year through both greenfield and brownfield projects.
Persio Morassutti appointed as director of Shree Digvijay Cement
25 February 2015India: Shree Digvijay Cement Company has reported that Persio Morassutti has been appointed as a director. He will replaces Osvaldo Ayres Filho following his resignation.