Displaying items by tag: Malaysia

Italy: Cementir Holding recorded revenues from sales and services of Euro1.22bn in 2020, up by 1% year-on-year from Euro1.21bn in 2019. Cement and clinker volumes rose by 13% to 10.7Mt from 9.49Mt. Volumes registered the sharpest increase in Turkey, of 39%. Ready-mixed concrete (RMX) volumes grew by 7.8% to 4.4Mm³ from 4.1Mm³. The company maintained its 2019 earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) levels of Euro264m. It said that an improvement in performance in Turkey, Denmark, Egypt, China and Sweden balanced out negative effects on earnings in Belgium, US and Malaysia.

Chair and chief executive officer Francesco Caltagirone said, “In 2020, despite the serious pandemic, the group showed significant resilience with a 13% increase in cement volumes sold and revenue reaching the historical record. On a recurring basis, EBITDA increased by 2%, EBIT was up by 4% and yearly cash generation was Euro119m."

Under Plan 2021 – 2023 Industrial Plan, the company says that it envisages sales growth of 20% to Euro1.47bn and EBITDA growth of 29% to Euro340bn in 2023 compared to 2020 figures. It said that digitalisation investments begun in 2019 will contribute an expected Euro15m to EBITDA in 2023. As part of its sustainability commitments it has set a CO₂ emissions reduction target of around 30% by 2030, with emissions below 500kg/t of grey cement. However, it said that under the future European Taxonomy criteria white cement emissions are not included.

The group is planning to invest around Euro107m from 2021 to 2023 on sustainability and digitalisation. This includes a the construction of a new calcination plant in Denmark for the production of its Futurecem product and, the installation of wind turbines with an installed capacity of 8.4MW. It is also planning to increase the alternative fuels substitution rate at its integrated Gaurain plant in Belgian to 80% from 40% and invest in the use of natural gas and biogas in some of its plants.

Indonesia: Semen Indonesia subsidiary Semen Padang’s cement and clinker exports totalled 1.6Mt in 2020. Indonesia Government News has reported that the company said that it exported 0.2Mt of cement and 1.4Mt of clinker throughout the year. The main markets for its products were Bangladesh, China, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Australia, the Maldives and Sri Lanka.

Semen Indonesia group senior export sales manager Fifit Abriyanto said, “There are two types of cement that we export, namely ordinary Portland cement (OPC) Type I grade 52.5N and OPC Type I grade 42.5N."

Malaysia: Belgium-based Etex has merged its cement boards subsidiary Kalsi Malaysia with fireproofing specialist Promat Malaysia under the new brand Etex Malaysia. The company says that the name change “reflects Etex's broader commitment to inspire ways of living through innovation.” PR Newswire Asia has reported that by combining its Malaysian subsidiaries under the Etex Malaysia brand the group aims to strengthen its offerings to local and export Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) markets.

Malaysia: Cahya Mata Sarawak recorded a profit of US$8.72m in the first half of 2020, down by 63% year-on-year from US$23.4m in the first half of 2019. Total sales declined by 40% to US$117m from US$196m. Cement sales also declined, by 31% to US$46.8m from US$68.1m. The company attributed this to the impacts of the coronavirus lockdown.

Malaysia: Cahya Mata Sarawak (CMS) has reported a first quarter profit of US$4.04m, down by 64% year-on-year from US$11.4m in 2019. Sales fell by 32% to US$65.9m from US$97.6m. The company said, “Ordinarily, there is a lower level of activity in the first quarter;” however it predicted a 50% year-on-year profit drop for its cement division in the first half of 2020. It said that it expects its construction materials and trading division’s performance to “pick up and remain strong” in the second half of 2020.

Malaysia: Singapore-based Hong Leong Asia subsidiary HL Cement Malaysia has acquired an 88% stake in Tasek Corporation. Hong Leong Asia subsidiary Ridge Star has acquired the remaining 12% minority stake. MarketLine News has reported the total value of the deal as US$19.4m.

Philippines: LafargeHolcim’s sale of its 86% stake in Holcim Philippines to San Miguel Corporation for US$2.15bn has fallen through after the Philippines Competition Authority (PCC) failed to approve the deal within 12 months of its conclusion. Reuters News has reported that the agreement, dated 10 May 2020, covered the exchange of four integrated plants and one grinding plant. LafargeHolcim has been divesting assets to pay off debt. The sale of its Holcim Philippines stake would have completed its withdrawal from the South-East Asia market, where its operations across Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines had been valued at US$4.90bn.

LafargeHolcim has said that three of its four integrated Philippines cement plants have been able to resume operations following the lockdown due to the coronavirus outbreak. It says that it will ‘focus on strengthening operations in the Philippines.’

Malaysia: The Cement and Concrete Association of Malaysia (CCA) has praised the government’s decision to grant an exception to cement plants in order to allow production to resume in the third phase of the country’s lockdown, beginning on 28 April 2020. The Straits Times newspaper has reported that the current and previous stages of the lockdown have exacerbated the cement sector’s losses over the past two years.

The CCA said that the development ‘will have a multiplier effect on the economy.’ CCA chair Datuk Yeoh Soo Keng said that 100,000 jobs ‘depend either directly and indirectly on cement production,’ including many ‘in small and medium enterprises’ that will not survive the outbreak without it. “Cement is the fundamental building material of our country’s wealth,” he added. The CCA thanked the government for the ‘welcome reprieve’ and urged it to allow ‘related sectors to slowly and gradually resume operations, for the industry to effectively function.’

Germany: Gebr. Pfeiffer has appointed the current head of its Malaysia office Timothy Burden as president of its US subsidiary Gebr. Pfeiffer Inc., effective 1 January 2020. Burden brings 15 years’ materials handling and crushing engineering and sales experience to the role. He studied at Queen’s University Belfast and attained his Masters in engineering from the University of Southhampton in 2004.

Gebr. Pfeiffer will replace Burden in the Malaysian office with Vesa Peurakari, an experienced project and service manager and sales professional with a mechanical engineering degree from the University of Gothenburg.

Malaysia: Cahya Mata Sarawak (CMS) has responded positively to the government’s announcement that it will be subdividing its annual contracts for road maintenance between new concessionaries besides CMS’s 51% subsidiary PPES Works in 2020. “Competition in any market naturally breads competitive efficiency. This can only be good for the public and road users,” said CMS Group Managing Director Isaac Lugun. “We maintain the lion’s share,” he added.