Global Cement News

Vietnam: A 8.36% rise in electricity prices in late March 2019 is set to cause an increase in the price of cement. The Vietnam Cement Industry Corporation (VICEM) said that cement producers had also been hit by an increase in coal prices, according to the Vietnam News Agency. The rise in the price of coal follows a lack of supply from the Vietnam National Coal and Minerals Industry Holding Group (VINACOMIN) leading to producers to import coal. Cong Thanh Cement has not raise its retail prices but has charged distributors more. Nguyen Quang Cung, chairman of the Vietnam Cement Association, said that producers were not surprised by increase in electricity prices and had been preparing for it.

France/Thailand: SCG Cement has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with France’s Constant Energy to build 50MW of solar photovoltaic (PV) units at its plants and associated companies. The target is to deploy and commission the solar PV plants over the next three years, through rooftop-based, ground-mounted and floating solar PV plants. Engineering of a first solar PV plants has started and the pre-construction permitting and licensing process will be handled in the second quarter of 2019, followed by construction.

Bolivia/Mexico/US: The US District Court of Colorado has confirmed compensation of US$36.1m awarded to Bolivian investment company Compania de Inversiones Mercantiles (CIMSA) from Mexico’s Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua (GCC). The arbitration follows a dispute that started in 2011 between CIMSA and GCC about the sales of shares in the Sociedad Boliviana de Cemento (SOBOCE) to Consorcio Cemento del Sur de Perú.

GCC said that it will continue to dispute the ruling and that it would continue to fight the legal case in Bolivia. In 2015 local courts in Bolivia overturned damages imposed by the Inter-American Commercial Arbitration Commission (CIAC) upon GCC.

Morocco: Ciments du Maroc’s turnover fell slightly to Euro371m in 2018. Its net profit grew by 3.4% year-on-year to Euro96m in 2018 from Euro92.8m in 2017. Its cement sales volumes fell by 2.7% in 2018 compared to a drop in local cement consumption of 3.7%. The board of the cement producer said that it was continuing its development plan at Nador in the south of the country.

Tanzania: Twiga Cement’s revenue rose by 30% year-on-year to US$151m in 2018 from US$116m in 2017. Its net profit grew by 60% to US$24.6m from US$15.4m. Its cement sales volumes increased by 9%. The subsidiary of Germany’s HeidelbergCement said that the local cement market saw continued growth in 2018 and that, despite production overcapacity, it maintained its ‘market leadership.’