Global Cement News

Ghana: Alan Kyerematen, the Minister for Trade and Industry, has blamed the increasing price of cement on negative currency exchange effects and growing fuel prices. He informed the Parliament of Ghana that the cost to import clinker has risen significantly, according to the Ghana News Agency. Kyerematen also noted that the cost of freight has surged due to the coronavirus pandemic and then the war in Ukraine.

Morocco: LafargeHolcim Maroc is preparing to export clinker to West Africa in early July 2022. The shipment will be the plant’s second clinker export following a consignment of 40,000t to Guinea, according to the Les Eco newspaper. The plant, based near Tidsi, has been operational since late 2021.

Mexico: Cemex has launched a Green Financing Framework. The framework is intended to allow the building materials producer to issue green financing instruments aligned with the International Capital Market Association (ICMA) Green Bond Principles and the Loan Market Association Green Loan Principles. Under the Framework, Cemex intends to allocate the net proceeds from the issuances to finance eligible green projects in areas such as CO₂ emissions reduction, clean electricity and energy efficiency, clean transportation, water management, air quality, circular economy and waste management. The framework reflects the roadmap and objectives of Cemex's climate action program, Future in Action. Cemex says it is the first of its kind in the building materials sector.

“After launching our Sustainability-Linked Financing Framework in 2021, it is only natural for us to build on that initiative with additional sustainable finance innovation in the form of the Green Financing Framework, that will enable the building of a more resilient future for all,” said Maher Al-Haffar, Cemex's Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and founding member of the United Nations Global Compact CFO Coalition for the Sustainable Development Goals.

Tanzania/UK: Maweni Limestone has joined the World Cement Association (WCA) as a Corporate Member. The cement producer is based in Tanzania and it has a production capacity of 1.5Mt/yr. In 2020 it was acquired and reconstructed by China-based Huaxin Cement.

“We are delighted to welcome Maweni Limestone among our membership, as one of WCA’s key ambitions is to more effectively engage emerging-market players across the global cement ecosystem” explains Ian Riley, the chief executive officer of the WCA.

South Africa: PPC’s full-year consolidated sales were US$624m in the 2022 financial year, which ended on 31 March 2022, up by 11% year-on-year from US$561m in the 2021 financial year. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 6.9% to US$94.5m from US$101m. During the year, the group reduced its debt by 55% to US$63m from US$139m.

The group noted high cement demand across its markets in the 2022 financial year, including a sales volumes increase of 28% year-on-year in Zimbabwe. It also noted a 19% year-on-year increase in South African cement imports, mainly from Vietnam, which constituted 10% of sales in the 2022 financial year. PPC said that it will ‘immediately make additional capacity available’ to capture the increased demand through the rest of 2023 financial year.