Displaying items by tag: Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka: Tokyo Cement plc, which operates grinding plants and bulk cement terminals in Sri Lanka, lost US$3.78m in the three months to 30 June 2018 due to falling revenues, as well as a one-off loss of US$2.37m on the sale of a ship. The group had reported a profit of US$5.04m in the same period of 2017.

In the three months to 30 June 2018 Tokyo Cement’s gross profit fell by 27% year-on-year to US$9.36m, with revenues falling by 4% to US$48m and costs rising by 4% to US$39m.

Tokyo reported to its shareholders that delayed local government polls had halted small projects country-wide, leading to a slowdown in the construction sector.

Sri Lanka: Singha Cement has launched a new logo and packaging, according to the Daily Financial Times newspaper. It operates a terminal near Colombo. The company is a subsidiary of Germany’s Heidelberg Cement.

Sri Lanka: Insee Cement’s new grinding plant at Galle is scheduled to be completed in August 2018. Chairman Paul Hugentobler said that the company had spent US$50m on the project, with US$5m of this total on environmental features, according to the Daily News newspaper. The 0.45Mt/yr mill is being supplied by Germany’s Loesche. It will grind clinker and granulated blast furnace slag into Portland Limestone Cement and Portland Slag Cement (PSC) with a throughput of up to 60t/hr.

Sri Lanka: Tokyo Cement has launched resource-planning software across its business. The software was developed by Abas and implemented by Providence Global, according to the Daily News newspaper. The software is being deployed across all of Tokyo Cement’s operations, including its cement plant at Trincomalee, its ready-mix concrete plants, and its bulk cement import terminal and biomass power generation units. The new software is intended to fully integrate supply chain management and warehouse operations.

Sri Lanka: The Sri Lanka Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) has allowed Insee Cement and Tokyo Cement to increase the prices of a 50kg bag of cement. The Ministry of Industry and Commerce gave its approval subject to the ratification of the CAA as it is a price-controlled commodity, according to the Times of Sri Lanka newspaper. The cement producers made the request to raise their prices due to increasing costs of raw materials. However, the country’s three other producers have not made any request to the CAA to raise their prices and the cost of imported cement is reported unchanged.

Sri Lanka: Insee Cement has started building a new 0.45Mt/yr cement grinding mill, supplied by Loesche, at its Ruhunu plant in Galle. Deputy Minister of Port and Shipping Nishantha Muthuhettigama and Residence Manager of Galle Sujeewa Wimalasiri attended the event, according to the Daily Financial Times newspaper. The US$14m project is scheduled for completion in mid-2018.

Loesche is supplying a jumbo-sized compact cement grinding (CSG) mill for the unit. The mill is capable of grinding clinker and granulated blast furnace slag into Portland Limestone Cement and Portland Slag Cement (PSC) with a throughput of up to 60t/hr.

Sri Lanka: A leaked letter from investment body the Agency for Development has revealed Chinese state pressure towards a tender for building a new cement grinding plant in the Hambantota investment zone. In the letter, reported upon by the News First television network, the head of the agency states that the Chinese Embassy asked that a Chinese investor, Sinoma Nanjing, be given priority for the project otherwise it would ‘lose confidence’ in the scheme. He added that the Chinese investors would pull out if other investors were also allowed to produce cement in the zone. The letter also reveals that the agency has proposed that Sinoma Nanjing form a joint venture with Ceylon Steel Corporation.

Sri Lanka: Nandana Ekanayake has been appointed as the chief executive officer of Siam City Cement Lanka. Previously Ekanayake was the Finance Director at Holcim Vietnam and was the Vice President of Holcim Lanka, according to the Daily News newspaper. Thailand’s Siam City Cement purchased Holcim Lanka in mid-2016.

Sri Lanka: India’s Dalmia Cement Bharat has partnered with local import firm Oliver Impex to launch the Vijaya Cement brand. The SLS 107 certified product has a strength class of 42.5 N, according to the Daily News newspaper. AHM Fowzie, the State Minister of National Integration and Reconciliation, was the chief guest at the launch event.

Sri Lanka: Insee Cement has signed research and development partnership deal’s with the Universities of Peradeniya, Moratuwa and Ruhuna. The agreements are intended to enhance the local construction industry through education, innovation and knowledge sharing, according to the Sunday Observer newspaper. The agreement was signed by Janaka Weerakoon of Siam City Cement and Upul Dissanayake of the University of Peradeniya, Ananda Jayawardena of the University of Moratuwa and SGJN Senanayake of the University of Ruhuna. Insee Cement was previously known as Holcim Lanka before it was purchased by Thailand’s Siam Cement in 2016.