Displaying items by tag: Pakistan
DG Khan Cement hires Schneider Electric for electrical upgrade
01 September 2020Pakistan: France-based Schneider Electric will provide a ‘comprehensive electrification solution’ to improve the efficiency and sustainability of cement production at DG Khan Cement’s 3.2Mt/yr integrated Hub cement plant in Karachi, Balochistan. The Nation Newspaper has reported that the supplier’s ECOStruxure product will give operators ‘a full view of energy use across the plant,’ according to the company. Additionally, “artificial intelligence (AI)-powered software will help the company to take a predictive approach to maintenance,” it said.
Hub cement plant general manager Arif Bashir said, “Our goal is to monitor and manage power across our infrastructure efficiently, find electrical faults sooner, fix issues quicker and achieve a faster return on investment. Schneider Electric’s energy efficiency solutions that will improve our performance.”
Lucky Cement reports 68% profit drop in 2020 financial year
27 August 2020Pakistan: Lucky Cement’s profit for the 2020 financial year ended 30 June 2020 was US$19.9m, down by 68% year-on-year from US$62.4m in the 2019 financial year. The company recorded a 13% sales drop to US$249m from US$285m, which it said was due to the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.
Pakistani producers lobby for tax cuts
27 August 2020Pakistan: Leading cement producers have said that prices will rise by 10% before 2021 if a reduction in Federal Excise Duty (FED) to US$5.95/t of cement from US$11.9/t does not materialise. DG Khan Cement owner Nishat Group chair Mian Mansha said, “Failing this, producers will take a US$119m total hit on revenues,” according to the Express Tribune newspaper.
Khawaja Muhammad as chairman of Thatta Cement
05 August 2020Pakistan: Thatta Cement has appointed Khawaja Muhammad as its chairman. He succeeds Naheed Memon.
Pakistan: The Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) has launched an investigation into alleged collusion between cement companies that may have been the cause of a localised cement price spike in northern Pakistan. On 25 July 2020 the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) recorded cement price rises of up to 8.9% in Punjab and Khyber Pakthunkhwa compared to a month earlier, according to the Profit newspaper. Officials had predicted a nationwide price drop after the government abandoned the Federal Excise Duty (FED) on cement in June 2020. Prices have decreased by a small margin in the southern regions of Balochistan and Sindh.
The Ministry of Industries and Production previously asked producers to lower cement costs in May 2020 in order to boost construction in the interest of the post-coronavirus lockdown economic recovery.
Pakistan: Cement producers dispatched 47.8Mt of cement in the 2020 fiscal year, which ended on 30 June 2020, up by 2% year-on-year from 46.9Mt in the 2019 fiscal year. Data from the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association shows that the largest area of growth was in cement exports from southern Pakistan, up by 46% to 5.88Mt from 4.01Mt, while northern exports fell by 22% to 1.97Mt from 2.53Mt. Conversely, domestic dispatches fell by 29% in the south to 5.64Mt from 7.98Mt, and rose by 6% in the north to 34.3Mt from 32.4Mt, thus constituting 72% of total dispatches.
Diamer Basha Dam to use concrete containing fly ash
20 July 2020Pakistan: The upcoming Diamer Basha Dam and 21MW Tangir Hydropower Project will use concrete made from Ordinary Portland Cement mixed with fly ash and other additives. The Frontier Works Organisation said, “This reduces thermal loads on the dam and reduces chances of thermal cracking,” according to China Daily News. The Chinese-backed project is scheduled for completion in 2028.
DG Khan Cement to export cement to the Philippines
13 July 2020Pakistan: DG Khan Cement has secured a contract for the supply of cement to a customer in the Philippines. The cement producer exported 0.27Mt of cement and 0.71Mt of clinker in its financial year to 30 June 2019. Government Advisor for Commerce, Textile, Industry and Production Abdul Razak Dawood called the addition of a Philippine client to the company’s order list a “breakthrough” saying, “Once market reach extends then market share will increase. Increasing geographical diversification is an important part of our strategic trade policy.”
Lucky Cement delivers coronavirus crisis relief
09 July 2020Pakistan: Lucky Cement is using its trucks to deliver food to those eligible for disaster relief under the government’s Ehsaas emergency ration scheme. Pakistan Press International has reported that since the beginning of the coronavirus crisis Lucky Cement has made food 8000 deliveries to affected people in rural Khyber Pakthunkhwa and Sindh. The company said, “We are further expanding our muscle to support more deserving families across Pakistan.”
Pakistan: Power Cement says it has started commercial operation of its new 7700t/day clinker production line at its Nooriabad plant. It completed the procurement and installation of machinery for the new line in mid-2019. It was supplied by Denmark’s FLSmdith.