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Russia: According to SKRIN Newswire, on 30 June 2015, Verkhnebakanskiy Cement Works appointed FBK OOO as its auditor for 2015 and decided not to pay common dividends for 2014. A new board was elected, which included Igor Veremiy, Anatoliy Ziskel, Oleg Ivashchenko, Lev Kvetnoy and Yefim Starikov. Popova Galina was elected as the controller. On 1 July 2015, the board elected Lev Kvetnoy as its chairman.
Kenya: According to Reuters, Kenyan cement producers have said that they are being left out of a US$3.8bn railway project that China Rail & Bridge Corporation (CRBC) is building, after the company gave an assurance it would source all of the raw materials domestically.
Companies including Lafarge South Africa's Kenyan unit and ARM Cement have asked Kenya Railways Corporation, the implementing agency, to provide clarity on CRBC's local procurement plans, five months after work on the project started, according to ARM Cement CEO Pradeep Paunrana. Kenya Ports Authority data show that CRBC has imported at least 7000t of cement so far in 2015.
"There was an assurance that all of the cement would be supplied by local producers," said Paunrana, who is also chairman of the Kenya Association of Manufacturers. "There has not been transparency on how much we will supply and we don't understand why they are importing cement when we can clearly supply cement to their specifications."
The 'Standard Gauge Railway Project' (SGR) is Kenya's biggest investment in infrastructure since it gained independence from Britain in 1963. The Export-Import Bank of China is funding 90% of the railroad, which will connect Nairobi to Mombasa, East Africa's biggest port. It is scheduled to be completed by 2017. Kenya's Treasury is pinning its 7% growth target for 2015 partly on activities generated during construction of the 609km link. In June 2015, treasury secretary Henry Rotich allocated US$1.46bn to the project for the 2015 - 2016 financial year.
The SGR project requires 1Mt of cement, all to be sourced in Kenya, according to a master list of supplies that the manufacturers' association was given by CRBC. Kenya is a higher cost producer of cement than China and imports for the project are duty-free, according to Paunrana. Kenya Railways spokeswoman Mary Oyuke has said that the company isn't importing cement because the material is available locally and ARM and Bamburi are already supplying the project.
ARM and other producers, including Lafarge's unit Bamburi Cement, have upgraded their plants to produce the 52.5 grade cement required by the contractors. The enhancements cost 'several million dollars' and were commissioned on the understanding that CRBC would buy the cement from domestic manufacturers. "We undertook significant investments in an endeavour to seamlessly supply cement to the project, including long-term agreements with transport companies to make deliveries," said Bamburi CEO Bruno Pescheux. "It is our hope that the project will continue to purchase cement locally rather than import, in light of the above investments." Bamburi supplied 20,000t of cement in April 2015.
Lafarge Mahaweli celebrates safety month 07 July 2015
Sri Lanka: According to the Daily News (Sri Lanka), Lafarge Mahaweli Cement has concluded its health and safety month 2015, with a number of activities held at its plant premises in Colombo Port.
The theme of 2015's safety month, which was in line with Lafarge's global best practices on secure operations, was 'Keep Learning - Committed, Open, Uncompromising,' with special emphasis on zero accidents and a firm commitment towards engaging and caring for one another.
Like all key stakeholders of Lafarge Mahaweli, employees and their children were also given the opportunity to actively participate in the health and safety month by being part of the 'Good Practices and Safety at Home' internal competition, where their ideas on health and safety within the home were accepted and judged according to competition guidelines. The best ideas and concepts received special awards.
China: According to Reuters, Anhui Conch Cement sold its shares in Xinjiang Qingsong Building Materials and Chemicals Group and Tangshan Jidong Cement Company in the April – June 2015 period for a net profit of US$217m.
Caribbean Cement is named Champion Exporter 07 July 2015
Jamaica: Caribbean Cement Company is Jamaica's Champion Exporter for 2014, for which it was awarded the Governor General's Trophy by the Jamaica Exporters Association. Caribbean Cement also won the category III award for achieving sales above US$5m. There were 29 awards on offer, covering everything from support services to export tonnage, export value, agricultural exports, Caricom exports and third country exports. There were also awards for service export champions that included technological solutions, shipping and logistics.