Displaying items by tag: Pakistan
Pakistan: Lucky Cement commenced clinker production from a new 3.15Mt/yr kiln line at its Pezu integrated cement in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in late December 2022. This latest expansion increases the producer’s domestic production capacity by 26% to 15.3Mt/yr, from below 12.2Mt/yr earlier in 2022. The company also operates cement plants in Democratic Republic of Congo and Iraq with an additional capacity of 4.4Mt/yr.
The International News newspaper has reported that Lucky Cement anticipates domestic cement demand to grow due to the rebuilding of homes destroyed by flooding in 2022.
Lucky Cement mourns death of chair Muhammed Yunus Tabba
03 January 2023Pakistan: Lucky Cement announced the death of Muhammed Yunus Tabba ‘with deep sorrow and grief’ on 3 January 2023. At the time, Tabba was serving as chair of the company’s board and as a non-executive director of the company.
Lucky Cement instructed investors that it will fill Tabba’s former roles ‘in due course, as per the requirement of law.’
Ghazanfar Baber Siddiqi appointed as head of Dewan Cement
21 December 2022Pakistan: Dewan Cement has appointed Ghazanfar Baber Siddiqi appointed as its chief executive officer (CEO). He succeeds Ishtiaq Ahmad in the position.
Ghazanfar Baber Siddiqui holds 25 years of professional experience including 14 years of managing different product lines for the Pakistan-based subsidiary of ICI. He has worked for Yousuf Dewan Companies for around 10 years, serving as the chair of Dewan Textile Mills during this time. He holds a master’s degree in inorganic chemistry from the University of Karachi and a master in business administration (MBA) in marketing from the International University in Missouri, US.
National Transmission and Despatch Company to build new grid station for Chakwal cement plants
19 December 2022Pakistan: National Transmission and Despatch Company (NTDC) has secured a US$46.6m loan from German state-owned bank KfW for construction of a new 500kV grid station in Chakwal, Punjab. The German government loaned NTDC a further US$2.55m for power capacity expansions. The investments will go towards increasing the availability of electricity in Chakwal, primarily for the benefit of the district's multiple cement plants.
Bestway Cement, DG Khan Cement and Gharibwal cement operate four cement plants with a total capacity of 8.5Mt/yr in Chakwal.
Fauji Cement wins fire safety award
05 December 2022Pakistan: Fauji Cement is among 50 Pakistani industrial companies to win a prize at the 12th Fire Safety 2022 on 4 December 2022, the Balochistan Times has reported. Fire Protection Industry of Pakistan (FPIP) and the National Forum for Environment and Health (NFEH) selected the winners for their fire safety investments, training time, awareness practices and state of equipment, with the aim of controlling incidents of fire and saving lives.
Bestway Cement is a Carbon Neutralisation Pioneer
28 November 2022Pakistan/UAE: China-based renewables supplier LONGi Green Energy Technology has awarded Bestway Cement its Carbon Neutralisation Pioneer award at a ceremony in Dubai, UAE. The award acknowledges progress in industrial sustainability during the past year. Bestway Cement is the first Pakistani recipient of the prize.
Bestway Cement operates 62MW-worth of solar power capacity at installations at its Chakwal, Farooqia, Hattar and Kallar Kahar cement plants. Managing director Irfan Sheikh said that this setup enables it to minimise CO2 emissions and the company's reliance on the national grid. Bestway Cement was also the first Pakistani cement producer to install waste heat recovery (WHR) plants across all of its integrated cement plants.
Pakistan Association of Builders and Developers alleges cement industry cartelisation
22 November 2022Pakistan: The Association of Builders and Developers (ABAD) has accused cement producers of cartelisation and called on the government to take 'stern action' following a rise in cement prices. The Business Recorder newspaper has reported that builders believe that the rise does not reflect trends in local raw materials and imported coal prices. Additionally, it comes in spite of a drop in cement demand.
Protests at Bestway plant in Hattar
08 November 2022Pakistan: Residents of Hattar have taken to the streets against outbreaks of various illnesses that they claim are due to pollution and the release of wastewater from Bestway Cement’s plant in Hattar. Protesters gathered outside the factory gates to lodge a strong protest and chanted slogans against the ‘anti-people policies’ of the factory management.
The protest was led by local councillor Sajjad Hussain Shah, Imran Ali Shah and Syed Zaheer Shah, who complained that the plant had blocked canal water, discharged chemically-contaminated water into sewage lines, illegally used union council roads and failed to act regarding quotas to employ local residents. The protesters claimed that ‘every second person’ in the area had fallen victim to asthma and that the canal blockage had brought locals the ‘gift of dengue fever,’ which spreads via flies in stagnant water.
The management of the plant said that any decision regarding the demands of the protesters could only be taken after getting approval from head office, issuing a statement that read, “We received a four-point formula from the protesters and assured them that their demands will be accepted. We will inform our head office regarding the whole situation. We hope that the issues will be settled soon.” This was countered by the protesters, who claim that several similar protests had gone unheeded in the past.
Pakistan’s cement dispatches fall in October 2022
07 November 2022Pakistan: Cement dispatches declined by 18.5% year-on-year across Pakistan in October 2022, according to data from the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers’ Association (APCMA). Total cement dispatches during October 2022 were 4.25Mt, compared to 5.22Mt in October 2021. Local dispatches fell by 3.98Mt in October 2022 from 4.60Mt in October 2021, a fall of 15.5%. Exports fell by 40.7% from 611,000t in October 2021 to 362,000t in October 2022.
During the first four months of the current fiscal year, which began on 1 July 2022, Pakistan’s total cement dispatches - domestic and exports - were 13.9Mt, down by 23.1% from more than 18Mt during the corresponding period of the prior fiscal year. Domestic dispatches during this period were 12.5Mt against 15.9Mt a year earlier, a reduction of 21.4%. Exports were 36.0% lower than in the first four months of the 2021 - 22 fiscal year, falling to 1.38Mt.
Pakistan: Dewan Cement recorded US$16.2m in turnover during the first quarter of its 2023 financial year, up by 17% year-on-year from US$13.9m in the first quarter of the 2022 financial year. Its cost of sales also rose, by 41% to US$17.7m from US$12.5m. As such, the producer's loss more than doubled to US$3.13m, from US$1.32m in the first quarter of the 2022 financial year.