Displaying items by tag: Plant
Nigeria: BUA Group's US$600m, 3Mt/yr capacity Obu cement plant in Okpella, Edo is set to be start cement dispatches in the first week of August 2015. Clinker production has already commenced.
"The Obu Cement plant, which is about 5km away from Edo Cement Company, is 100% owned by BUA Group. The Edo Cement plant, which has a capacity of 500,000t/yr is also being upgraded and will receive clinker from the Obu Cement plant before being fully completed," said BUA Group chairman and CEO Abdulsamad Rabiu. "The two plants will produce about 3.5Mt/yr of cement. Asides from the initial cost of over US$500m in Obu Cement, we have also invested over US$100m in gas turbines to power a 50MW plant for 24-hour electricity generation, as well as the construction of a 30km gas supply pipeline." The Obu Cement plant was supplied by FLSmidth of Denmark, while the civil construction was handled by construction firm Julius Berger.
Rabiu said that the company's three-year journey to construct the plant would give a much-needed boost to Nigeria's cement industry, as well as enhance the development of related sectors including housing and construction. Rabiu said that the plant's location in Edo makes it a strategic point for markets in the north and south of the country. "Essentially we are 200m to the highway linking Okene, Kogi and Benin, Edo, which will guarantee adequate distribution of products," said Rabiu. Rabiu revealed that an estimated 250 – 300 trailers of cement would be delivered to markets across the regions each day once the Obu plant starts full commercial operations.
The Obu Cement plant currently uses 9000t/day of limestone and clay for its large-scale operations, which will provide over 1500 direct jobs. The plant will produce 32.5, 42.5 and 52.5 grade cement.
"As far back as April 2014, BUA Group signed a gas sales and purchase agreement with the Nigerian Gas Company (NGC), which will guarantee the supply of about 0.9Mft3/day of gas to the Obu plant. However, liquid fuels will also be used as a backup, to ensure production around the clock," said Rabiu.
Local construction firms cry foul over new PPC plant
30 July 2015Zimbabwe: PPC is under fire from local construction companies that have accused it of sidelining them in the construction of a new cement plant in Ruwa in favour of foreign companies, as reported by All Africa.
According to 'inside sources,' local companies submitted bids, but these were rejected due to a directive from the cement company's head office to sideline local companies and renegotiate a new contract with the main contractor, China's Sinoma International Engineering. The Chinese company was already undertaking construction works at the cement plant. Sources have said that since the beginning of construction, no projects have been awarded to local firms, which claim to have the same technical ability and expertise as the foreign companies.
"PPC is constructing a cement plant in Ruwa and is using only Chinese contractors to build the plant at the expense of local construction companies with the same capacity. Local companies submitted bids and none of them got a contract," said one unnamed source.
Another source said that a Chinese workforce drove the whole construction project being executed by Sinoma, which was against the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio- Economic Transformation Agenda's goal of creating jobs. "A number of local indigenous companies have tendered for various technical expertise, but none of them have been recognised. We believe that in order to empower local companies, there should be joint ventures between the foreign companies and locals to get a win-win scenario," said the source.
PPC managing director Njombo Lekula said that the company had engaged Sinoma on an engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) arrangement. He said that the EPCM was a common form of contracting arrangement for very large projects within the infrastructure, mining, resources and energy industries. "We engaged the Chinese in an EPCM arrangement and the contractor is the one that knows how to execute the project. Right now, Sinoma employs 60 locals, which I think is a large number. Due to the arrangement it is obvious that the contractor will provide for all the materials required, but we told them that we need a quarter of local supply as well. The claims are baseless considering that we contracted also JR Goddard construction to do our road and sewer reticulation works for US$700,000. So to say we are sidelining locals is unfounded," said Lekula. He added that the company would continue to empower local companies and suppliers. For example, an indigenous company has been awarded a contract to do all of the rail infrastructure at the plant at a contract value of about US$3m.
PPC expects to complete the construction of its 1Mt/yr capacity cement plant in the first half of 2016 with an investment of about US$86m having been made towards the project so far. The project would cost a total of US$200m after completion, with the investment package set to aid the setting up of another plant in Mashonaland Central. PPC is also building a separate grinding facility in Mozambique's Tete Province.
Nepal: Nepal has endorsed a US$360m Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) proposal made by China's Hongshi Holdings to establish a cement plant in Nepal in partnership with Nepal's Shiva Cement. This is the largest FDI pledge yet from China, according to the government officials.
China's Hongshi Holdings and Nepal's Shiva Cement reached an agreement in March 2015 to set up a cement plant in Nepal. Officials at the IBN said this is the third-largest FDI in cement plants in Nepal. As per the agreement, Hongshi Holdings will invest 70% in the project, while the Shiva Cement will invest the remaining amount.
According to Nepal's Cement Manufacturers' Association, there are more than 40 (mainly mini) cement plants in the country and domestic products only account for 85% of domestic consumption.
US: Essroc, part of Italcementi, has acquired the Holcim (US) slag cement grinding plant in Camden, New Jersey, according to MarketLine. As part of the transaction, Essroc will also obtain Holcim's cement terminal in Everett, Massachusetts, US. Upon completion of the transaction, Holcim's staff in Camden and Everett will join Essroc. The transaction is expected to be completed later in 2015. The acquisition will allow Essroc to strengthen its position in the sustainable building products market.
Indonesia: Holcim Indonesia is ready to operate its new US$350m Tuban II plant at the end of 2015, according to Indonesia Finance Today.
Kent Carson, finance director of Holcim, said that in the last three years, the company has aggressively expanded production by building the new Tuban I and II cement plants with a total investment of US$850m. The new plants have 12.5Mt/yr of combined cement production capacity. Holcim Indonesia plans to boost market penetration into a number of areas in East Java and outside Java areas such as in Kalimantan.
Diah Sasanawati, corporate communications manager of Holcim, said that in anticipation of the weakening domestic demand for cement, Holcim plans to export to Vietnam, the Philippines, and Africa. In 2015, the company lowered its annual capital spending by 25% year-on-year to US$250m.
Brazil: Votorantim Cimentos intends to temporarily suspend production at its cement plant in Ribeirao Grande, Sao Paulo from August 2015. The plant will operate as a distribution centre from this time. The decision has been blamed on current Brazilian financial climate.
A total of 128 workers are to lose their jobs, of which 83 have already been suspended, according to Valor Econômico. The company has also confirmed it is working with the workers union for the region to try to relocate the dismissed workers.
Emami Cement to build cement plant in West Bengal
23 July 2015India: Emami Cement plans to build a 1.5 – Mt/yr capacity cement plant in Panagarh, Bardhaman, West Bengal, according to the Palestine News Agency. The plan also includes a 10MW captive coal-fired power plant. Land has been allotted by the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC). The estimated cost of the project is US$65.7m.
Bolu Cimento completes Ankara plant upgrade
22 July 2015Turkey: Bolu Cimento Sanayii AS has completed the conversion of its Ankara grinding facility to a fully-integrated cement plant, according to Reuters. The plant will start operations in July 2015.
New Zealand: The third-largest lime producer in the world, US-based Graymont, has bought the Makareao lime plant in Otago from Holcim and took over the facility on 1 July 2015. Graymont, which has extensive interests in Canada, the US and Mexico, has also bought the McDonald's lime plant at Te Kuiti, Waikato, New Zealand.
Graymont Makareao's operations manager Craig Porter said that the lime plants' output had grown over the last two or three years and that he was excited about the new ownership. Staffing at the plant will not be affected.
Holcim's Weston cement plant project was put on hold in 2013 after it decided to import cement into New Zealand and build two new terminals, including one at Timaru, about four months from the completion of the plant. Waitaki Mayor Gary Kircher said that Holcim still owns the Weston site, associated quarries for limestone, coal and sand and consent for the cement plant that could be established there.
US: Construction materials company Summit Materials has completed its previously announced acquisition of a 1.2Mt/yr capacity cement plant in Davenport, Iowa along with seven cement distribution terminals from Lafarge North America for US$450m in cash, plus an exchange of Summit's Bettendorf, Iowa cement distribution terminal.
The newly acquired cement operations will compliment Summit's existing cement plant in Hannibal, Missouri and cement distribution terminal in St Louis, Missouri. The combined business will operate as Continental Cement, an existing wholly-owned subsidiary of Summit.
Following completion of the transaction, Summit owns 2.4Mt/yr of cement production capacity across the two cement plants plus eight cement distribution terminals along the Mississippi River system ranging from Minneapolis, Minnesota to New Orleans, Louisiana.