Displaying items by tag: Arabian Cement
Arabian Cement’s net profit grows to US$15.9m
21 August 2015Egypt: Arabian Cement Company's net profits grew to US$15.9m in the first half of 2015, up from US$13.8m in the same period of 2014.
Egypt: According to Reuters, Arabian Cement Company has commissioned new alternative fuel processing machinery at its plant in Suez.
The state-of-the-art FLSmidth HOTDISCTM allows Arabian Cement's plant to rely completely on coal and alternative fuels to run its operations. Moreover, it enables the plant to operate its kilns using alternative fuel materials directly, without the need to pre-treat them. Arabian Cement now has a designed fuel mix of 70% coal and 30% alternative fuels. The alternative fuel that will be used will be a mixture of agricultural wastes, municipal sludge and refuse-derived fuels (RDF). Alternative fuel use is expected to result in around 60,000t/yr of reduced CO2 emissions.
Egypt: Arabian Cement reported an 11% year-on-year increase in revenues to US$76.7m during the first quarter of 2015. This, however, did not lessen the significant drop in the company's net profits, which plummeted by 52% to US$7.34m. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 19% year-on-year to US$24.1m. Profit before tax declined by 45% to US$11.3m.
The company said that higher transportation costs led to higher costs of production and impacted the quarterly results. The company added that the devaluation of the Egyptian Pound against the US Dollar had influenced the company's foreign losses, which surged to US$4.06m in the first quarter of 2015, compared to a US$301,422 loss in the same period of 2014.
Arabian Cement said that, despite it being a tough quarter, it had succeeded in operating at above 90% clinker capacity and also increased its sales volume. Its market share also grew by 1%, rising from 7% in the first quarter of 2014 to 8% in 2015.
Arabian Cement’s first quarter profit down
26 May 2015Egypt: Arabian Cement has reported that in the first three months of 2015, which ended on 31 March 2015, its net profit fell to US$7.52m versus a net profit of US$15.3m a year earlier.
Arabian Cement Co signs mill deal with CNBM
02 April 2015Saudi Arabia: Arabian Cement Company (ACC) has signed a US$96.5m contract with China's state-run CNBM, under which the Chinese firm will supply and install two cement mills at ACC's plant in Rabigh. The contract includes all engineering, construction and electrical and mechanical works. It will take 13 months to complete.
Saudi cement firms see net profit rise by 6% in 2014
30 January 2015Saudi Arabia: The combined net profit of the Saudi cement firms rose by 6% in 2014 to reach US$1.56bn compared with US$1.48bn recorded in 2013. The profit during the October - December quarter grew by 31% to US$383m compared with US$293m during the same period in the previous year.
The net profits of seven firms, out of 14 listed companies, grew. The profits of six companies dropped in 2014 and one company, Um Al-Qura, registered a net loss.
Arabian Cement Company (ACC) registered the biggest profit, with its profits reaching US$172m compared to US$51.0m in 2013, an increase of 236%. The company attributed the surge in profits to a growth in sales, which reached US$457m in 2014, compared with US$361.6m in 2013.
ACC was followed by Hail Cement Company (HCC), which was the second biggest booster for the sector. Its profits reached US$39.1m in 2014 compared to US$13.3m in 2013, increasing by 191%.
The profits of six companies dropped in 2014 and this negatively affected the sector's profit growth for the year. The profits of Yamama Cement Company (YCC) fell by 23%, followed by Saudi Cement Company (SCC), the profit of which fell by 8% year-on-year.
Saudi Arabian Cement appoints board chairman
07 January 2015Saudi Arabia: The boards of directors at the Arabian Cement Company has approved the appointment of Abdullah Mohammed al-Eissa as board chairman, with a three-year term starting from 1 January 2015.
In early December 2014, the company elected a new board of directors. The other newly-elected board members are Ghassan al-Souleiman, Saud al-Souleiman, Adel al-Zaid, Ibrahim al-Rajhi, Ibrahim Aba al-Khail, Sami Baroum, Mu'taz al-Azawi and Alwaleed al-Dareean
Egyptian cement producers fight for ‘king’ coal
07 May 2014Egypt's cement producers have taken their fight to use coal to the opposition in recent weeks. Producers like Suez Cement and Titan have started pushing the benefits of using coal including its place as an international mainstay and highlighting the potential savings for the state.
In March 2014 the Minister of Trade and Industry Mounir Abdel Nour announced that cement companies could start using coal from September 2014. However, with pressure from environmental activists and even the Minister of Environment voicing disapproval for coal this seems to be a long way off. Fuel issues continue to bedevil Egyptian cement producers as reports emerged this week that gas supplies to 10 cement plants were cut. The plants, which represent 70% of the country's production base, have been forced to close temporarily. Egypt is one of the largest non-OPEC (Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) oil producers in Africa and the second largest dry natural gas producer on the continent.
The Egyptian government has been planning a reduction in the use of natural gas by industry. Yet the scale of the reduction has shifted. At first the Ministry of Petroleum intended to reduce supplies to cement plants by 35% in January and February 2014. Reportedly the price of cement then shot up by 30% in March 2014 to offset the rise in energy prices. Then the gas was cut completely, leading to the shutdowns.
In response Egyptian cement producers are investing in converting to using coal. This week Suez Cement announced a planned investment of US$40m to convert two of its four plants to use coal instead of natural gas subject to approval from the Ministry of Environment. Back in November 2013 Suez Cement announced similar plans to spend US$72.5m on converting its plants for coal. Similarly, Lafarge's preparations to use petcoke were also delayed by the ministry in February 2014.
Users of Egypt's gas supplies are caught between the reform of energy subsidies, a shortage in gas supplies and an increase in local demand. Industrial users like cement plants are stuck in a queue behind export markets and power plants. In addition international events such as the political instability in Ukraine might potentially rock the Egyptian gas market if Russian supplies were affected. The European markets would then start scrambling to secure their gas from other places such as Egypt.
In this situation, moving to the use of imported coal makes sense for cement producers. Yet groups like the 'Egyptians Against Coal' campaign argue that the issue is also about Egypt's sovereignty over its energy sources, not just pollution. Despite the optimism of the activists it seems unlikely that they can resist market pressures for long, especially with producers such as Suez Cement and the Arabian Cement Company announcing plans for increased alternative fuels substitution rates alongside their bigger plans for coal. Whether this is more than a sop remains to be seen.
Once dubbed 'King Coal' for its leading place in British industry before the second half of the 20th Century, coal is looking likely to take the crown as the fuel of choice in the Egyptian cement industry. How long it retains its crown though depends on the on-going competition between coal and gas use around the world.
IPO and alternative fuel news from Arabian Cement
16 April 2014Egypt: Arabian Cement Company has announced that its initial public offering (IPO) is expected to take place before the end of the second quarter of 2014, with trading on the Egyptian Stock Exchange to start around 21 May 2014. The company plans to sell a 22.5% stake.
Arabian Cement Company has also invested US$35m to shift from using 100% natural gas to 70% coal and 30% alternative fuels. It expects to use coal within the next three to four months once the government issues the company with the necessary license. The company produced 4Mt of cement in the 2013 fiscal year from a capacity of 5Mt/yr. It expects no growth in the 2014 fiscal year on the back of energy shortages.
Saudi Arabian Cement to boost Rabigh plant production capacity
25 February 2014Saudi Arabia: Arabian Cement Company (ACC) has announced that its management board has approved a project to boost the production capacity of the company's plant in Rabigh. The new production line will add a capacity of 10,000t/day and is expected to start operations in mid-2017. No financial details were available.