Displaying items by tag: Project
PPC reports progress of cement plant projects in Democratic Republic of Congo and Ethiopia
16 November 2016South Africa: PPC has reported update on projects in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Ethiopia. In the DRC it said that engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract work from Sinoma is complete and overall the cement plant it is building is 90% complete. Power infrastructure is being built at present and hot commissioning at the site will start once this is in place. Sales of cement are scheduled to start in February 2017.
In Ethiopia the cement producer has planned to commission its 1.4Mt/yr Habesha plant in the second quarter of 2017. Plant construction is reported as ‘progressing well’ with overall project progress above 80%, civil construction 94% complete, mechanical erection at 66% and 95% of equipment manufactured and delivered to site. The project has a budget of US$180m.
Arghakhanchi to expand in the face of foreign competition
15 August 2016Nepal: Arghakhanchi Cement has obtained a consortium loan pledge to finance the expansion of its cement plant from 1200t/day (0.4Mt/yr) to 3000t/day (1.0Mt/yr). The company expects to spend US$38.6m, including US$27m in consortium financing led by Nabil Bank. Other banks involved include Nepal Bank, NIC Asia Bank, Global IME Bank, Prime Bank and Century Bank.
The company's promoters, the Siddhartha Group, Murarka Organisation, Kedia Organisation and India's Uma Cement International, will invest US$11.6m in the expansion project.
When it is completed by the close of 2017 Arghakhanchi Cement will be the largest cement factory in Nepal. "If we don't increase our capacity and achieve economy of scale, we will vanish once big plants with foreign investment start producing cement," said Rajesh Agrawal, Managing Director.
Nigeria’s Dangote Cement, China’s Hongshi Cement and Huaxin Cement and India’s Reliance Cement have all received approval to start operations in Nepal. Their combined foreign direct investment amounts to US$1.45bn and their proposed output stands at 22,000t/day (7Mt/yr).
EAPCC to sell land to fund revamp
08 July 2016Kenya: The East African Portland Cement Company (EAPCC) is waiting for cabinet approval to sell US$98.8m worth of land as part of efforts to return to profitability.
The Nairobi bourse listed firm, through the Ministry of Trade, has prepared a brief for Cabinet approval to sell part of 13,000 acres of land it owns in Athi River.
Proceeds from the sale will be used to retire a US$37.5m debt and partly fund a revamp of its ageing plant, which requires nearly US$400m of investment to be brought to a level where the EAPCC can compete well with nimble rivals like Savanna Cement.
UAE: India's JK Cement has revealed that its plant in Fujairah, UAE is due to reach full production capacity by 2017. At full capacity the plant will be able to produce 0.6Mt/yr of cement.
The plant is unusual in that it can produce both grey and white cement from the same kiln. The expansion of the UAE plant's production capacity is in line with increased demand for white cement in the Middle East, according to JK Cement’s Ajay Mathur.
Dangote to build two new Nigerian plants
08 February 2016Nigeria: Dangote Cement has announced that it will build new cement plants in Nigeria, in Okpella in the northern part of Edo State and Itori in Ogun State. Dangote said that the new plants are expected to add 9Mt/yr to the company’s current output of 29.25Mt/yr, raising it to a total 38.25Mt/yr.
The Group’s Managing Director Edwin Devakumar, made the announcement in Lagos. He explained that the Okpella plant will have one 3Mt/yr cement line and that the Itori plant will deliver 6Mt/yr from two production lines. Both plants are expected to come on stream within the next three years.
Devakumar said the company’s expansion drive was targeted at expanding its nationwide presence and reducing the transportation cost component of its operations. He added that the new investments will also lower the cost of production, bring about a future reduction in the price of cement and generate employment opportunities in the host communities.
Group Managing Director for Cement Onne van der Weijde said the demand for cement was still high considering the population growth in Nigeria. He observed that Nigeria’s consumption of cement, at 100kg/capita was relatively low by international standards, indicating growth potential.
Van der Weijde added that Dangote Cement can supply the entire western and central Africa region. Dangote Cement currently exports cement to Niger, Ghana and Togo, with plans to also move into the Ivory Coast.
Tajik government scouting for cement plant investment
03 December 2015Tajikistan: The government of Tajikistan is looking for investors for construction of a 1Mt/yr cement plant near the Tuyun-Tao limestone deposit in the Shakhritus district in the south of the country, according to Avesta news agency.
The project has been included in the government's investment portfolio for implementation through direct investments, according to the Tajik State Committee of Investment and State Property Management. The project requires US$350m of investment. Some Russian, Iranian and Chinese companies earlier showed interest in the deposit. Indeed, in 2012, Chinese building materials corporation CNBM prepared a feasibility study for the project, but the project did not reach implementation phase due to its high cost and the absence of infrastructure.
Colombia: ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions has received an order to build a cement clinker production line from Cementos Argos, the biggest cement producer in Colombia and one of the largest in the Caribbean. The new 4300t/day facility will be built in Sogamoso, around 200km north-east of the capital Bogotá, in the province of Boyacá. The contract is worth around Euro100m.
ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions is supplying all components for clinker production as well as quality assurance and monitoring systems. Startup of the line is planned for the end of 2017.
Jens Michael Wegmann, CEO of the Industrial Solutions business area, said, "With our highly-efficient cement plants we are contributing to a resource-friendly infrastructure expansion across the world. To even better leverage the growth potential of the emerging economic regions in the future we are pushing forward the integration and regionalisation of our operations worldwide."
The main components are a 1200t/hr primary crusher for limestone, a 500t/hr secondary crusher for raw material and a 40,000t capacity circular blending bed. The raw material will be ground in a QUADROPOL QMR2 roller mill with a throughput of 355t/hr and stored in a 7000t homogenising silo.
The kiln line comprises a five-stage, single-string preheater with PREPOL AS-MSC calciner, a POLFLAME-VN rotary kiln with sinter zone burner and a POLYTRACK clinker cooler. A further QUADROPOL QMK2 roller mill with a throughput of 26t/hr of coal will be supplied for preparing the fuel. A POLCID process control system and a POLAB APMplus laboratory automation system will be installed for quality monitoring and control.
During construction and commissioning, ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions will provide construction management services, consulting services and supervision. During operation of the plant the company will provide assistance in the form of operation and maintenance support services as well as training of operating personnel.
New joint venture plant coming to Colombia
01 October 2015Colombia: Cementos Molins has signed a deal with Grupo Colombiano Corona for US$370m to jointly produce cement in Colombia. The firms will launch a 1.35Mt/yr cement production plant in Colombia in the middle of 2018.
Shangfeng Cement to invest in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan
30 September 2015Tajikistan/Uzbekistan: Chinese cement producer Shangfeng Cement plans to raise US$240m through a non-public share offering. It will be used to partly fund investments in Central Asia. A total of US$130m will be invested in projects in Tajikistan, US$137m will be invested in projects in Uzbekistan and US$16m will be used to replenish working capital.
The first phase of the Tajik project, with a construction period of 18 months, will be capable of producing 0.96Mt/yr of clinker and 1.2Mt/yr of cement. Its products will be sold in southern and central Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and northern cities in Afganistan.
The Uzbek project will be the same size, with its products sold to eastern Uzbekistan, southern Kyrgyzstan and northern Tajikistan.
Ohorongo Cement supplying cement to build St Helena airport
21 September 2015St Helena/Namibia: Ohorongo Cement has supplied 24,604t of cement towards the construction of the first-ever airport at St Helena island in the South Atlantic Ocean. It will continue to supply cement until the project is finished. The US$419m project is being developed by Basil Read and covers construction of the St Helena Airport and Permanent Wharf. Completion is planned by February 2016, according to local media.
Other projects the Namibian cement producer is supplying include the Husab Mine, Neckertal Dam, Walvis Bay Namport Harbour Project, an acid plant at Tsumeb and construction projects in Zambia and Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The company enjoys infant industry protection awarded by the Namibian government in 2013 for eight years. It recently announced that the Development Bank of Namibia had increased its stake to 11.72%.