Displaying items by tag: Nigeria
Nigeria: Osita Anthony Aboloma, the Director General of the Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON), has blamed poor cement as a major cause of building collapses. He made the comments via a deputy at a technical committee meeting for the review of the standard for cement (NIS444-1.2014) in Lagos, according to the Nigerian Sun newspaper. The standard is being reviewed for the next five years.
Also at the meeting, Joseph Odigure, the chairman of cement standards at Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) at the University of Lagos, was appointed chairman of the technical committee. Professor Garuba Abu was appointed as its Vice Chairman.
Mining ministry and BUA Group argue over mining dispute
05 December 2017Nigeria: The head of the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development has publicly rebutted accusations by Abdulsamad Rabiu, the chief executive officer (CEO) of BUA Group, that the ministry and Dangote Cement have ‘sabotaged’ operations at the company. Rabiu made the allegations in a letter sent to President Muhammadu Buhari, according to the This Day newspaper.
Rabiu says that the rival cement company and the ministry colluded in a legal dispute about operations at Okpella in Edo State and mineral resources. Allegedly, a militia attempted to damage the cement plant before security forces intervened. Later government officials and police tried to stop work at a BUA Cement mine despite on-going legal action.
Mohammed Abass, the head of the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, responded by describing Rabiu’s accusations as, “…an unwarranted campaign of calumny against the ministry.” He added that the cement company was attempting to blackmail the ministry into granting a ‘free pass’ for illegal operations. The ministry says that it issued a Stop Work Order for the disputed mine in 2015 but that BUA Group ignored it and has continued to work at the site whilst the legal case was pending. Later, the staff of BUA Group resisted an attempt to shut the site down in mid-November 2017.
Dangote Cement to sell cement online with Jumia
05 December 2017Nigeria: Dangote Cement has signed a deal with retail firm Jumia Nigeria to sell cement online. Individual and corporate customers can buy a minimum of 300 bags of 50kg of Dangote Cement and have them delivered via the new service. The pilot initiative will cover Lagos, Port Harcourt and Abuja at launch.
“Dangote Cement decided to work with Jumia Nigeria based on its credibility and excellent performance over the years in online shopping management,” said Dangote Cement, Key Account Director, Chux Mogbolu. He added that the new scheme is intended to help stop online scams selling cement.
Dangote inaugurates Mfila plant in Congo
24 November 2017Congo: Dangote Cement commissioned its new Mfila plant in the Republic of Congo on 23 November 2017. The 1.5Mt/yr integrated facility, which cost US$300m to construct, will employ around 1000 direct workers and contribute to the creation of many indirect jobs. It is the largest cement plant in the country.
At the inauguration ceremony, Congo’s President Denis Sassou Nguesso said that the construction of the plant marked part of an ‘industrial revolution’ in the Economic Community of Central African States (CEMAC). He said that Congo was happy to host Dangote Cement, which he had observed operating to the benefit of other sub-Saharan African countries. He said that the timing of Dangote’s investment was fortunate as the country needed to diversify its economy in light of falling oil revenues.
The Nigerian President Mohammadu Buhari was represented at the event by a delegation led by the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr Kayode Fayemi. He commended Aliko Dangote for contributing to the economic development of Africa and said that his ‘sterling accomplishment’ made Dangote Cement a ‘worthy ambassador’ of Nigeria.
Dangote to commission Congo plant
21 November 2017Congo: Dangote Cement will officially open its 1.5Mt/yr capacity cement plant in Congo on Thursday 23 November 2017. Constructed for around US$500m, the plant is expected to directly employ more than 1000 people, while thousands of indirect jobs will also be created. The plant, which is now the largest in Congo, rolled out its first bag of cement on 7 August 2017. The company's third quarter unaudited results showed that the Congo plant, which recently began operations, has almost doubled cement capacity of the country.
The Congo plant commissioning will bring the number of Dangote Cement’s fully operational plants across Africa to 10. The company is currently active in 17 African countries.
Lafarge Africa shareholders approve merger with United Cement Company of Nigeria and Atlas Cement
15 November 2017Nigeria: The shareholders of Lafarge Africa have approved the merger with United Cement Company of Nigeria (Unicem) and Atlas Cement. Lafarge Africa chairman Bolaji Balogun said that the merger would streamline its operations and reduce its costs, according to the Nigerian Guardian newspaper. Lafarge Africa is the sole shareholder of Unicem and Atlas Cement.
Unicem operates the 5Mt/yr Mfamsoing cement plant at Calabar in Cross River State. Atlas Cement runs a 0.5Mt/yr terminal in Rivers State at the Federal Ocean Terminal in Onne. It originally supplied Ordinary Portland Cement but is now changing its market to the oil and gas sector.
Edo state looks for new investor for Ava Cement plant
07 November 2017Nigeria: Godwin Obaseki, the Edo State Governor, say that the state is negotiating with the Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) to find a new investor for the Ava Cement plant. Obaseki made the statement whilst visiting the Igarra, the headquarters of Akoko Edo Local Government Area, according to the Daily Trust newspaper. AMCON took possession of the plant due to its mounting debts.
Nigeria: Onne Van der Weijde, the chief executive officer (CEO) of Dangote Cement, has decided to step down. He will leave the post at the end of 2017 to return to his home country of the Netherlands. He has served three years in the role. Following the departure he will be appointed as a non-executive director with effect from 1 January 2018.
Until a successor is appointed, JO Makoju, Honorary Adviser to the chairman and former managing director of Lafarge WAPCO will be the acting managing director and CEO of Dangote Cement.
Ghana: George Dawson-Ahmoah, the chairman of the Cement Manufacturers Association of Ghana (CMAG), says that Nigeria is dumping cement in his country. He cited instances of imports of bagged cement from Nigeria, under the guise of the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme (ETLS), as disturbing pricing in the market, in an interview with the Business and Financial Times newspaper. Although Dawson-Ahmoah defended the ECOWAS scheme he raised issues such as evidence of dumping and export subsidies as being a threat to local cement producers.
Speaking at an annual industry association meeting he alleged that cement imports from Nigeria are being sold in the country for less than its value in the originating country in violation of World Trade Organisation rules. He also criticised the local Export Expansion Grant subsidy.
Dangote Cement remains interested in PPC
20 October 2017Nigeria/South Africa: Onne van der Weijde, the chief executive officer (CEO) of Dangote Cement, has said that his company still interested in buying South Africa’s PPC for the ‘right’ price. Weijde made the comments on an analysts call about the cement producer’s nine-month results, according to Reuters. He added that the South African company was a good fit for Dangote Cement.