Displaying items by tag: Colombia
Cemex sells Amazon terminal to Votorantim
29 May 2018Brazil: Cemex Latam has signed an agreement to sell its stake in Cimento Vencemos do Amazonas to Votorantim Cimentos for US$30m. Cimento Vencemos do Amazonas operates a river cement terminal in Manaus in Amazonas, according to the La Republica newspaper. The deal is subject to approval by the Brazilian and Colombian competition bodies and the Brazilian waterways transportation agency.
Colombia: Cementos Argos’ sales have fallen due to decreased cement sales volumes in Colombia and the US. It blamed poor weather in the US and a large number of holidays in Colombia for the situation. Its sales revenue dropped by 8.2% year-on-year to US$677m from US$737m. However, its adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 2% to US$107m from US$104m.
“The growth of EBITDA throughout all our regions is proof that the strategy we established is beginning to reap the benefits of the best efficiency programme and to focus our initiatives in continuing to provide the best experiences to our clients,” said Juan Esteban Calle, president of Cementos Argos.
Cement sales volumes fell by 4.1% overall to 3.69Mt. Volume drops were noted in Colombia and the US but in the rest of the world they rose by 11%.
Colombia: Cement production fell by 3.3% year-on-year to 2.9Mt in the first quarter of 2018 from 3Mt in the same period in 2017. Local despatches fell by 5.45 to 2.84Mt from 3Mt, according to data from the National Administrative Department of Statistics (DANE).
Colombia: The Superintendent of Industry and Commerce (SIC) has confirmed a US$73.5m fine issued against six top executives and cement companies for alleged market collusion. SIC says that Cementos Argos, Cemex and Holcim failed to provide an economically reasonable explanation for similar pricing, according to the El Colombiano newspaper. Cemex has accepted the decision and not filed an appeal. Cementos Argos and Holcim will take the case to the Dispute Tribunal.
US: Mexico’s Cemex says that the US Department of Justice (DOJ) is investigating whether the cement producer violated the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) in relation to a new cement plant being built by Cemex Colombia at Maceo in Antioquia. Previously, the cement producer received a subpoena from the US Securities and Exchange Commission in late 2016 as part of a probe also checking whether the FCPA had been breached.
Cemex says it is cooperating with both requests. However, it also said that it does not know how long either investigation will last or what impact the results of either investigation might have upon the company in terms of eventual sanctions.
In late September 2016 Cemex fired several senior staff members in relation to the Maceo project and its subsidiary’s chief executive resigned. This followed an internal audit and investigation into payments worth around US$20.5m made to a non-governmental third party in connection with the acquisition of the land, mining rights, and benefits of the tax free zone for the project.
Remote control cement plants for Cemex
13 March 2018Mexico: Cemex has announced that it has become the first company in the cement industry to successfully operate plants by remote control, from its central location in Monterrey, Nuevo León. According to the company, the Cemento Control Center (C3) operates 365 days a year, tracking live data from the operation of 14 cement plants, 25 kilns and 86 mills in Mexico. It also monitors a cement plant in Colombia and another in the US.
In a statement, Cemex said that the continuous monitoring of the system provides information on each stage of the production process, as well as the performance of the equipment installed in the cement plants. It allows the C3 operators to not only monitor the plants, but also to take immediate corrective actions, in coordination with local operations staff and with access to existing intelligent control systems. This helps to minimise any deviation from the objectives of safety, environmental control, efficiency and product quality.
"Cemex created the C3 system to take more effective advantage of the resources and technological innovation available through the company's global operating network," said the statement from Cemex. The company's vice president of operations, Edgar Ángeles, added that the company has applied the most modern technology to develop a unique system in the current cement industry. With the operation of C3, Cemex says that the plants have already seen a 50% reduction in the number of operational accidents as well benefits from immediate sharing of best practice and the generation of shared knowelege and expertise.
Cementos Argos helps test train line between Bogota and Belencito
26 February 2018Colombia: Cementos Argos and Ibines Ferreo have been helping the National Agency for Infrastructure run freight train tests on the 257km railway line between Bogota and Belencito. To show that the refurbished line can handle different loads, a train travelled from Cementos Argos' Sogamoso plant in the department of Boyaca to Bogota, according to the Portafolio newspaper. It carried 204t of cement at an estimated speed of 20km/hr.
ANI has invested US$73.3m in the refurbishment of rail infrastructure between Bogota and the Boyaca department. Sections of track repaired by ANI between Bogota and Boyaca include La Caro-Zipaquira, Bogota-Facatativa and Bogota-Belencito. The line stopped operating due to damage caused by winter storms in 2010 and 2011.
Grupo Argos and Grupo Calidra inaugurate US$40m lime plant
23 February 2018Colombia: Grupo Argos and Mexico’s Grupo Calidra have inaugurated a new US$40m lime plant at Puerto Triunfo, Antioquia. The unit has a production capacity of 90,000t/yr, according to the El Colombiano newspaper. The plant is the only one in Colombia capable of producing pulverized limestone. Grupo Argos and Grupo Calidra will operate the plant under a joint venture named Caltek. The new plant is expected to create 100 jobs.
Cementos Argos reports loss for fourth quarter
14 February 2018Colombia: Cementos Argos has reported a net loss of US$23.4m in the fourth quarter of 2017 due to lower prices and higher costs, primarily due to economic deceleration in Colombia. The net loss was a contrast to the US$21.6m profit made in the same period of 2016. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 8.9% to US$126.7m during the quarter.
"The fall in income and EBITDA of Cementos Argos is best explained by the price of cement in Colombia, which reached its lowest level in the second quarter of the year," said the company in a statement. Imports from countries that subsidise industrial energy costs and exchange rate changes led to the fall in prices.
For the whole of 2017 Cementos Argos’ net profit slumped by 86.3% to US$27.0m, compared to US$196.9m during 2016. EBITDA for the full year 2017 was down by 15% to US$497.0m.
Cemex reports on Maceo situation
08 February 2018Colombia: Cemex Latam Holdings, the subsidiary of Mexican cement company Cemex in Central and South America and Caribbean region, has confirmed that is ‘solving’ the legal issues that prevent the opening of its new plant in Maceo, Antioquia, Colombia. The inauguration of the facility was postponed in May 2017 after authorities stated that the plant had not obtained all the permits to start operations. Jaime Muguiro, president of Cemex Latam, expressed that the company was still awaiting authorisation for the expansion of the plant's installed capacity, which is currently artificially limited to 0.25Mt/yr. The plant has a design capacity of 1.3Mt/yr and has so far cost Cemex US$420m.