25 January 2012
German industry bodies to merge in spring 2012 25 January 2012
Germany: The German Cement Works Association (VDZ) and the Federal Association of German Cement Industry (BDZ) are due to merge in the spring of 2012 as the German Cement Works Association (VDZ).
This new body will represent 23 domestic cement companies with close to 7500 direct employees. It will represent about 95% of the cement industry in Germany with a turnover of approximately Euro2.1bn. "The merger gives us significantly greater clout and reach," said chief executive Dr Martin Schneider, who is set to lead the new organisation.
The German Cement Works Association will remain in Düsseldorf using the existing structure of the VDZ, allowing substantial resources to be concentrated. Schneider added that the established cooperation with the German Building Materials Association (BBS) will be strengthened allowing for better links between the German cement industry and the construction industry as a whole, as well as other partners in energy-intensive industry.
EAPCC to restart production after loss of US$3.5m 25 January 2012
Kenya: It was reported on 25 January 2012 that operations at the East African Portland Cement Company (EAPCC) were likely to resume on 26 January 2012 after the parties involved in the dispute 'ironed out their differences.' Some local reports are suggesting that many workers will stay away from the plant if it opens over an ongoing dispute with the management. EAPCC Chairman Mark ole Karbolo said, "A solution has been found," and that the board was meeting all stakeholders to agree on a return-to-work formula.
"It is the intention of the board that the company resumes operations immediately," said Karbolo. "The underlying issues that were raised will be addressed following the right procedure and also using the board processes."
The cement plant was shut down on 16 January 2012 when its staff blocked Managing Director Kephar Tande and board members who had just been reinstated by the court at the premises. The workers were demanding that a new board be constituted before they can agree to go back to work. They cited their lack of confidence in the board. One man was shot in the dispute.
The closure has prevented the normal production of around 30,000t of cement and an associated loss of about US$3.5m has been incurred. Despite the millions of dollars in losses, Karbolo is confident that the firm would be able to recoup its losses in coming days."It is possible. We will maximise our operations and our efficiencies and we should be able to recover," he emphasised.
Even if it is possible to safely return to normal operation in the coming days the concerns that have been brought to the fore by the infighting surrounding the shareholding structure will have to be addressed.
It remains unclear whether the 27% stake held by the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) should be treated as belonging to the government or if it should be considered as a separate entity. While the board members have maintained that the two main owners, namely the government and the NSSF, should be looked at as different shareholders, Industrialisation Permanent Secretary Karanja Kibicho, maintained that the government and the NSSF are one entity.
"As far as the government is concerned, its shareholding at EAPCC remains just like it was 10 years ago. Our shareholding in that firm is 52.3%," Kibicho maintained. Lafarge owns 41.7% and the public owns 6% of EAPCC.
Al Jouf signs up Chinese firm to double its capacity 25 January 2012
Saudi Arabia: Al Jouf Cement has announced that it has awarded a U$236m contract to China's Chengdu Design & Research Institute of Building Materials Industry Ltd, for the construction of a second production line at its plant. It was reported that the new line will have a capacity of 5000t/day.
Al Jouf said that the project would be financed by a combination of its own funds and debt and would be completed by February 2014. When complete, the new line will double the company's cement capacity to 3.5Mt/yr.
Major profit improvements across India 25 January 2012
India: After UltraTech Cement announced a 93% improvement in its net profit for the quarter ending 31 December 2011, Hyderabad Industries has also reported an improvement. The company posted a near 60% surge in its net profit to US$2.03m for the same quarter. Its total income has increased by 15% year-on-year from US$33.8m to US$38.7m in the quarter under review.
Shree Cement has also reported results for the quarter, which show a massive 115% surge in its net profit to US$11.8m compared to US$5.5m for the same quarter of 2010. Shree's total income increased by 61% year-on-year from US$156m to US$252m in the quarter under review.
Meanwhile, data from the Indian Cement Manufacturers' Association (CMA) has shown that cement sales grew by 5.3% percent to 159.7Mt during the period 1 April 2011 to 31 December 2011, up from 151.6Mt in the same period of 2010. The same CMA data showed that in December 2011, cement sales grew by 14% to 19.8Mt from 17.4Mt in December 2010.