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US$8m AfriSam Cement fraud case goes to court 27 March 2013
Namibia: The prosecutor general of Namibia has decided to prosecute Esmerelda Majiedt and five co-accused in the High Court for a scam which allegedly cost AfriSam Cement, the forerunner of the Ohorongo Cement factory, US$8m.
Majiedt is charged with corruption, with the state alleging that while she was employed at AfriSam Cement, she received payments in her personal capacity from customers of the company. During the hearing of a bail application by Majiedt in June 2011, it was alleged that suspect deliveries involving cement worth more than US$7.67m had been made to Afrisam customers without payments for such deliveries being reflected on the company's books. Majiedt claimed that other employees of the company knew her computer password and could have been responsible for the manipulation of Afrisam's accounting system.
Asia Cement China profits slammed by 71% in 2012 27 March 2013
China: Asia Cement Corp, one of Taiwan's leading cement suppliers, said that its subsidiary in China, Asia Cement (China) Holdings Corp, saw its net profit plunge year-on-year by 71% in 2012 to US$63.7m, due to an oversupply in China.
Asia Cement (China) posted a revenue of US$1.08bn in 2012, a year-on-year drop of 18.6%. Asia Cement blamed falling product prices in the Chinese market. Asia Cement (China) had a cement production of 24.9Mt in 2012 and its cement sales were 22.7Mt.
The China-based manufacturer sold 3.8Mt of cement in the Nanchang-Jiujiang district of Jiangxi Province, accounting for 31% of the district's total cement sales in 2012, while the company took a 27% share of the Wuhan market in Hubei Province, selling 5Mt in 2012. It accounted for 21% of the total cement sales in Chengdu, Sichuan Province and accounted for 30% of the cement market in Jiangsu Province's Yangzhou in 2012.
Asia Cement (China) said it aims to boost production capacity in its production line in Jianxi Province in an effort to boost its production to 30Mt/yr. In addition, the company said it will seek targets for acquisitions in a bid to further lift production to 50Mt/yr to rank among the top 10 cement suppliers in China.
TPI Polene plans US$341m capacity expansion 27 March 2013
Thailand: TPI Polene, Thailand's third-largest cement maker, plans to spend US$341m from 2013 to 2016 to develop a new production line at its Saraburi cement plant and to expand into renewable energy.
The project has been postponed since the financial crisis in 1997, said chief executive Prachai Leophairatana to the Bangkok Post. The fourth line will be developed at TPI Polene's existing plant in Saraburi province for US$194m. Production capacity will be raised by 33% to 12Mt/yr by 2026, making it the largest cement plant under one roof in the world.
"TPI Polene is the first Thai cement maker to invest in capacity expansion since 1997," said Prachai. "We saw cement demand gradually recover over the past few years. Additional demand will come from from the government's train projects over the next seven years."
TPI Polene has signed a memorandum of understanding to develop the project with Belgium firms P&V Project (Siemens), ALC Tournai, Atlas Copco and Magotteaux.
Thai cement exports from all producers are expected to come to 7Mt in 2013, down by 30% from 10Mt in 2012. TPI Polene aims to trim its exports to 700,000t in 2013 from 1Mt in 2012.
The company is also preparing to develop a 90MW unit fuelled by community waste, pending an environmental review. Around 60 MW from the new plant will be sold to the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, with the rest consumed in-house. The company also plans to generate additional revenue from the new power plant via sales of carbon credits under the Clean Development Mechanism concept.
Semen Indonesia to build US$200m plant in Myanmar 27 March 2013
Myanmar: Indonesia's largest cement producer PT Semen Indonesia, formerly Semen Gresik, has announced that it will build a US$200m cement plant in Myanmar early in 2014 as part of its expansion into the Southeast Asian market.
The company may pitch about US$70m for the plant, which it would set up with its Myanmar partners, as it aimed to control about a 40% stake in the planned joint venture, said president director Dwi Soetjipto in a press event reported by the Jakarta Post. The construction of the cement plant, designated with a capacity of 1Mt/yr, is scheduled to start in early 2014, while operations are expected to begin in 2017. Based on the firm's plan, the new plant will serve the Myanmar market and neighbouring countries like Thailand and Bangladesh.
The move by Semen Indonesia follows its acquisition of Vietnam's largest cement producer, Thang Long Cement Joint Stock Company, in late 2012. It now aims to expand its annual capacity to 6.5Mt/yr from 2.3Mt/yr by establishing two new plants. At home in Indonesia, Semen Indonesia is also preparing for capacity upgrades with the construction of cement plants in Rembang, Central Java and Padang, West Sumatra, both with production capacities of over 2.5Mt/yr.
In 2013 the firm has targeted a domestic market share of up to 44%, up from 41% in 2012, supported by increased output to around 27Mt from 22.6Mt in 2012, according to Dwi. The overall domestic cement market is estimated to increase by more than 10% to 6Mt in 2013, according to the Indonesian Cement Association.
Huaxin Cement sees profit almost halve 26 March 2013
China: Huaxin Cement Co Ltd, a Hubei Province-based cement producer, announced on 25 March 2013 that the company's net profit came to US$89.5m in 2012, a year-on-year decrease of 48.3%. Huaxin Cement saw its operating revenue for 2012 slide by 0.93% year-on-year to US$2.0bn.
The company attributed the drop in its profit to falling cement prices caused by overcapacity in the Chinese cement market during 2012.