Displaying items by tag: demand

Sri Lanka: Lanwa Sanstha Cement says that it will invest US$60m in expanding its newly commissioned Hambantota grinding plant in order to enable it to serve 60% of local demand.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said "Construction is a key contributor to the local gross domestic product (GDP). Our construction sector has a competitive edge in the global context, given its focus on technology and its emphasis on ethics and sustainability. We are certain this endeavour would serve to boost investor confidence, which is timely."

Germany: Rohrdorfer and Austria-based Andritz Group are in the process of installing a 2t/day CO₂ separation plant on the roof of the former’s Rohrdorf cement plant in Bavaria. The pilot plant will capture CO₂ from the plant’s emissions for use by the regional chemicals industry. The Ingenieur newspaper has reported that it will cost Euro3m and is scheduled for commissioning before June 2022. It is the first installation of its kind at a German cement plant.

Rohrdorfer’s plant and process engineering manager Helmut Leibinger said “We must begin to see CO₂ as a product of value rather than a problem. With CO₂ as a carbon source, Germany can protect the climate and at the same time become less dependent on oil and natural gas. In addition, value creation and jobs will remain in the country.”

Sri Lanka: Lanwa Sanstha Cement has successfully commissioned its 2.8Mt/yr Hambantota grinding plant in the Mirijjawila Export Processing Zone. Daily News (Sri Lanka) has reported that the facility is equipped with two bridge ship unloaders and an automated stacker reclaimer yard. It will produce the company’s full range of cements, including ordinary Portland cement (OPC), Portland composite cement (PPC) and blended hydraulic cement (BHC) catering to the rising local demand from landmark projects including the Port City and the network of expressways.

Benelux/France: Cementir Holding has introduced its Futurecem limestone calcined clay cement into the Benelux and French cement markets. Futurecem cement applies Cementir Holding’s patented processes to substitute over 35% of clinker in cement with limestone and calcined clay, preserving the cement’s strength and quality while reducing its carbon footprint by 30% compared to ordinary Portland cement (OPC).

Cementir Holding previously rolled out Futurecem cement in Denmark in 2021. In 2022, it plans to launch InBind high performance concrete (HPC) and ReCover ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) to expand its range of HPC and UHPCs using Futurecem technology.

Eddy Fostier, managing director of Cementir Holding’s Belgian subsidiary CCB, said “Thanks to the joint efforts of the group and CCB teams, Futurecem technology is the main pillar for CCB’s low carbon transition within the Group roadmap. This product technology is matching customer needs, highlighted through a specific survey carried out across the most relevant market areas and applications.” Fostier concluded “I’m fully convinced that Futurecem will play a relevant role in the decarbonisation of the construction industry, where cement and concrete are essential building materials both in the present and in the future.”

Pakistan: All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA) members exported 405,000t of cement in February 2022, down by 34% year-on-year from 616,000t in February 2021. Domestic deliveries also dropped, by under 1% to 3.95Mt from 3.96Mt. Amid the declines, Pakistani cement producers have reported a steep rise in their costs due to increases in international freight rates and coal prices and the country’s on-going ban on trade with neighbouring India. Cheaper Iranian cement has undercut Pakistani cement sales to Bangladesh, while the Afghan market has yet to recover following the withdrawal of peacekeeping forces.

US: Martin Marietta’s full-year consolidated sales were US$5.08bn in 2021, up by 15% year-on-year from US$4.43bn in 2020. Its cement sales rose by 9.3% to US$495m from US$453m. Overall, its adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 9.7% year-on-year to US$1.53bn from US$1.39bn.

The producer said that its Texas cement shipments increased by less than 1% to 1.1Mt in the fourth quarter of 2021. It attributed the record volume to demand growth from large and diversified projects and increased oil well cement demand. Nonetheless, higher energy and raw materials costs ultimately outpaced shipment and pricing gains.

Thailand: Sales from Siam Cement Group’s (SCG) cement business rose by 6% year-on-year to US$5.61bn in 2021. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 13% to US$145m. The company said that demand for cement improved gradually in the fourth quarter of 2021 following Covid-19 related shutdowns in the third quarter. Overall group sales were US$16.5bn in 2021, up by 33%, and net profit rose by 38% to US$1.4bn, boosted by the company chemicals division performance.

President and chief executive officer Roongrote Rangsiyopash said that its integration of environmental and social governance, along with a digital transformation, during the year contributed towards growth, along with a demand rise in line with the decline in Covid-19’s ongoing impacts.

Germany: Vecoplan Group has recorded its highest ever new order intake of Euro180m in 2021, up by 60%. The company said that its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) for the year also set a company record.

CFO Michael Lambert said “Internationalisation is picking up speed. In line with this, we are implementing new sales and service centres throughout the world. Additional locations in various countries and regions are being planned.” He added “In 2022, we will be putting the spotlight on our digitalisation strategy and investing several million euros in software and hardware.”

CEO Werner Berens added a note of caution: “In spite of the good prospects for the new year, supply chains will continue to be disrupted by global factors like supply bottlenecks, raw material shortages and logistics problems. We too must show that we are able to deal with these big challenges.”

Australia: In the third quarter of the 2022 financial year, James Hardie’s net sales rose by 22% year-on-year to US$900m. Its Asia Pacific fibre cement business recorded sales of US$140m, up by 20% and adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBIT) of US$38.2m, up by 17%. James Hardie’s North America fibre cement business’ sales also rose, by 24% to US$645m, while its adjusted EBIT rose by 18% to US$183m. Following the results, James Hardie raised its 2022 net income guidance to US$620 – 630m from US$605 – 625m.

Interim chief executive officer Harold Wiens said, "I am pleased to report the James Hardie team has continued to execute well on our stated global strategy.” He attributed the successes to “Firstly, enabling our customers to make more money by selling more James Hardie products and, secondly, marketing directly to the homeowners to create demand of our high value products through our customers."

Wiens also announced the launch of the company’s new Architectural cement boards collection.

US: Eagle Materials’ consolidated sales rose by 13% year-on-year to US$1.45bn in the third quarter of the 2022 financial year from US$1.28bn in the corresponding quarter of the 2021 financial year. Its sales of cement rose by 12% year-on-year to US$261m, while its earnings from the segment were US$79.8m, up by 13%. Cement volumes totalled 2Mt, up by 7% from third-quarter 2021 financial year levels.

Chief executive officer and president Michael Haack said that the results reflected both continued strength in US construction activity and excellent execution by Eagle Materials as Covid-19-related supply chain challenges continued. He said “We continue to see positive demand trends across our geographic footprint, driven by increased residential construction activity and expanded infrastructure investment. These trends should support growing construction activity and contribute to attractive pricing across our heavy and light materials businesses. We enter the last quarter of our fiscal year in a position of strength, with an excellent balance sheet enabling us to continue to execute on our core strategies.”

Haack added “I’m also proud to share that, during the first nine months of our fiscal year, we achieved the best safety performance in our history, demonstrating our deep commitment to our people and their wellbeing. During the quarter, we also continued to make strides towards our environmental stewardship goals. We are now producing and selling our eco-friendly Portland limestone cement (PLC) from four Eagle cement facilities.”