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South Africa: ARM Cement Ltd has yet to receive its directors' approval for a plan to construct a plant in South Africa.
"We have not approved any budget or plans at our board yet," said Pradeep Paunrana, managing director of ARM Cement. Mafikeng Cement, in which ARM has a 70% stake, plans to build a 3000t/day plant in South Africa.
ARM Cement is considering selling Eurobonds to help fund a planned US$300m expansion programme that will double cement production within four years, according to Paunrana.
African nations are investing heavily in the construction of ports, railways and power generation projects that will help to accelerate economic growth. Kenya's cement consumption has surged by 60% to 85.7kg/capita since 2009, while South Africa's has increased to 300kg/capita and Egypt's has reached 500kg/capita.
Fujian Cement sells 12m shares in Industrial Bank 03 January 2014
China: Fujian Cement Inc sold 12m shares in Industrial Bank Co Ltd between 30 - 31 December 2013. Fujian Cement will earn US$14.5m from the deal and continues to hold 50.4m shares in the Industrial Bank.
Iran: Iran plans to boost cement production to 75Mt by March 2014 and 85Mt by the end of the next Iranian calendar year, which starts on 21 March 2014.
"Iran, with a cement capacity of 70Mt/yr, is the world's fourth largest producer of cement after China, India and the United States," said Abdolreza Sheikhan, secretary of the Union of Cement Industry Employers, at the Sixth International Cement, Concrete and Construction Technology Exhibition in Tehran. He added that Iran will become the world's third-largest cement producer if its 75Mt nominal capacity becomes its actual production level.
Late in November 2013, Sheikhan said the country's cement output hit 44.6Mt in the first 7 months of the Iranian calendar year (21 March to 20 October 2013), a 2% growth compared to the same period in 2012. Iran's cleaner production hit 43.4Mt during the same period with 4% growth compared to the same period in 2012. He added Iran's cement and cleaner production reached 6.19Mt and 5.89Mt respectively in October 2013.
Farmer wins case against Saurashtra Cement 02 January 2014
India: A consumer court has asked a cement company to compensate a farmer for the cost of house construction as the quality of its cement was not found up to the necessary standards.
Rahimbhai Sherasiya started construction at his farm in Dhuva village with 200 bags of Hathi brand cement that he bought from Saurashtra Cement Ltd in December 2012 for US$871. As construction proceeded he found that the cement was of very poor quality. It could not hold construction material and further construction was not possible.
Sherasiya complained to the company and the authorised dealer but did not get a proper reply. Through company officials he sent samples of the cement to the laboratory of the Gujarat Engineering Research Institute (GERI) to get the cement tested for quality. GERI's report revealed that the cement was not as per the Indian Standard.
When the company refused to pay heed to his complaint, Sherasiya moved the Rajkot Consumer Dispute Redressal Forum and demanded compensation. This included the amount he had invested in paying for transportation and labour and purchasing construction material. The company denied all charges and claimed that GERI is not a government-approved agency and that its report was misleading.
ARM announces new Kenyan plant to counter Dangote's advances 23 December 2013
Kenya: ARM Cement is set to build Kenya's largest cement plant in Kitui County, setting it up for a fight with Nigeria's Dangote Cement, which also has plans to open a U$400m plant in the same region.
ARM says that it will raise up to US$300m to fund new plants including the planned unit in Kitui, which will produce 8000t/day (~2.5Mt/yr) of cement. This will make it the single largest cement factory in the country and places the unit ahead of the planned Dangote plant, which has a planned daily capacity of 5500t/day (~1.8Mt/yr). ARM's fund-raising will be done through a mixture of bank loans, corporate bonds and rights issues.
"We plan to start construction of the Kitui plant late in 2014. It is a major development for us," said Pradeep Paunrana, ARM's chief executive, to the Daily Press.
This announcement will re-open the fight for Kitui mines, which were the subject of a fierce court battle between ARM and Bamburi Cement in 2010. The 100km2 area is rich with high-quality limestone. The East Africa Portland Cement Company (EAPCC) has also directed its management to strike a deal with Kitui County so that it can secure key raw materials and counter moves made by Dangote and local rivals.
Kenya produced 4.7Mt of cement in 2012, up from 2.8Mt in 2008, according to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics. With double-digit cement market growth expected in the coming years, Kenya has caught the eye of Dangote Cement and new entrants National Cement and Mombasa Cement as well as the established players.