Displaying items by tag: Investment

Egypt/Saudi Arabia: The Saudi Arabian Al Sharbatly Group is reported to be looking to invest up to US$3bn in Egyptian interests, including setting up a second clinker line at its South Valley Cement plant. Egypt’s Minister of Investment and International Cooperation Sahar Nasr said that he welcomed all investors in Egypt after meeting with Sheikh Abdel Rahman al Sharbatly and Sheikh Fahd Al Shobokshy to discuss ways to increase their investments in Egypt.

Nigeria: Aliko Dangote, chief executive officer (CEO) of Dangote Group and Dangote Cement, plans to invest an incredible US$20 - 50bn in the US and Europe by 2025, in industries including renewable energy and petrochemicals. Speaking in a wide-ranging interview with Bloomberg, Dangote said that the group’s cement activities account for 80% of Dangote’s overall wealth. The new investments would more likely come in renewable energy and agriculture, rather than cement, with an aim to conduct 60% of all investments outside of Africa by 2020.

India: Birla Corporation is considering a US$375m investment in a greenfield cement plant at Mukutban, Maharashtra. Harsh V Lodha, the group’s chairman, stated that the decision would be put before the board for approval.

Speaking about the company’s recent acquisition of Reliance Cement, Lodha added, “Reliance’s plants did not have a captive power plant, so we are in the process of setting up a waste heat recovery system at a cost of US$19.5m.” The company is also studying the feasibility of a captive thermal power plant there. Lodha also said that demand for cement is rising in Central India and no new capacity was coming up in the region, which he said bodes well for the company’s new assets.

Philippines: Holcim Philippines is set to invest US$54m over the next two years to expand capacity and brace for ‘cut-throat’ competition that it says has affected is profitability. In the first six months of 2017, Holcim Philippines’ net profit fell by 42.6% year-on-year to US$41.5m on the back of a 16.7% decline in net sales to US$344.2m. For the second quarter alone, its net profit slumped by 46.2% year-on-year to US$22.9m. The decline in income was attributed by the company to lower sales alongside higher production input costs. Nonetheless, the company said that it would continue to invest to raise its cement production capacity from 10Mt/yr to 12Mt/yr to support demand as the government rolls out its flagship infrastructure projects.

In a statement Holcim Philippines president and chief executive Sapna Sood said that the investment indicated the company's continued commitment to the development of the country and its customers. "Our investments ensure that Holcim Philippines will continue to provide a reliable supply of an essential building material as cement demand increases in the country as these projects come on stream," she said. "The company will invest US$54m in the next two years to add 2Mt/yr to its current cement capacity by the first half of 2019, particularly in La Union and Davao."

Liberia: The government is considering a 17-year tax reduction deal worth US$200m to encourage the Liberia Steel and Cement Mining (LICEMCO) to build a cement and steel plant. The so-called Investment Incentive Agreement is between the government, the TIDFORE Investment Company and LICEMCO, according to the Liberian Observer newspaper. A government Committee on Investment and Lands, Mines and Energy will investigate and report on the proposal by the end of July 2017.

Philippines: The Board of Investments (BOI) is seeking investment in the cement sector as it expects demand to double to 40Mt/yr by 2020 due to a peak in government infrastructure spending. At the same time Department of Trade and Industry (TI) Undersecretary for industry promotions group Ceferino S Rodolfo confirmed that two companies are preparing to build new integrated plants, according to the Manila Bulletin newspaper. Both companies are obtaining permits for their projects but Rodolfo would not confirm their identifies. DMCI Holdings was reported in the local press as being interested in building a plant Antique's Semirara Island in early June 2017.

India: The state investment promotion board of Andhra Pradesh has approved proposals by Chettinad Cement and KCP to build cement plants in the state. Chettinad Cement plans to spend US$210m towards building a grinding plant in Vizag and a plant in Guntur, according to the Economic Times newspaper. These projects are scheduled to start production in March 2019. KCP has allocated US$83m towards its project in Krishna with the first phase of operations due to start in mid-2018. However, media commentators have noted that the south of India is facing cement production over capacity.

Cameroon: Mira’s plans to build a 1Mt/yr cement plant have taken a step forward with an investment of US$55m. The investment is a continuation of an agreement signed with the government in late 2015, according to the African Press Agency. The project intends to use a 2013 private investment incentives law granting tax exemptions over a 5 – 10 year period to set up the plant.

Philippines: Republic Cement & Building Materials has approved a five-year capital expenditure programme to increase its clinker and cement production capacity to meet local demand. One of the cement producer’s owners, Aboitiz Group, announced that it was making the investment to take advantage of infrastructure development plants by the Duterte administration, according to the Philippines Star newspaper. The upgrade is expected to increase the company’s production capacity by 1Mt/yr from its current level of 7Mt/yr. The investment will be spent on both production efficiency improvements at existing plants and by building a new kiln.

Bangladesh: The China Building Materials Federation has expressed interest in investing US$2bn in the country’s infrastructure. A 12-person delegation from China met with the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) to discuss the proposal that includes developing the cement sector. Both sides have agreed to sign a memorandum of understanding on the potential investment.