Displaying items by tag: Egypt

Egypt: Misr Cement Group has announced an increase in its financial performance for 2024, reporting a net profit of US$5.4m. This represents a 136% increase year-on-year compared to 2023, when it made just US$2.3m. The company said that its growth underscored its successful cost optimisation, operational efficiency and market expansion policies, despite economic challenges.

Hassan Gabry, managing director and CEO of Misr Cement Group, said “The significant profit increase is a testament to the strength of our strategies and the efficiency of our management. We remain committed to expanding both locally and internationally while reinforcing our leadership in the cement industry across the region.”

Egypt: Arabian Cement Company has signed a 30-year power purchase agreement with IRSC for renewable electricity. The deal covers the development, financing, construction, ownership and operation of the second phase of the firm’s solar power plant. The plant will have a total capacity of 17.6MW and is expected to produce 32.5GW/yr of electricity.

Egypt: Sinai Cement reported a net profit of US$60.7m in 2024, compared to a net loss of US$2.40m in 2023. Net sales rose to US$127m in 2024 from US$84.7m in 2023. Non-consolidated net profit reached US$60.7m, compared to a loss of US$2.32m in 2023.

Egypt: Tareq Samaha, the CEO of Egyptian Cement Group (ECG), has died. In a post on LinkedIn ECG said that he had “…passed away after a long career of giving and achievements in the field of cement industry.”

Tareq Samaha became the CEO of Egyptian Cement Group in 2018. Earlier in his career he was the Commercial Director for RAK White Cement in the UAE from 2006 to 2016. Before this he worked as the Trade Manager (cementitious products) for Heidelberg Materials Trading from 2003 to 2006. He also held roles with Al Jeri Transportation, Emirates Steel Arkan and Sika during his career. He was a graduate in architecture from Ain Shams University in Cairo.

Egypt: Sinai Cement has appointed Wael Abdrabbou as Head of Finance.

Abdrabbou has worked in financial management roles at the subsidiary of France-based Vicat since 2020. Before this he held accounting roles for the bags unit of Lafarge Egypt from 2004. He eventually became the division’s Chief Accountant from 2014 to 2020. Abdrabbou holds an accounting degree from Mansoura University and a master of business administration from the Arab Academy For Banking And Financial Science.

Egypt: Arabian Cement Company (ACC) has signed a €25m loan agreement with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). The loan will be used to assist the company’s decarbonisation efforts. It will finance the company’s alternative fuel capacity expansion and automation of its facilities. The company will also acquire and install a hydrogen injection system at its Ain Sokhna cement plant. This will reduce CO₂ emissions by 130,000t/yr.

CEO of Arabian Cement, Sergio Alcantarilla, said "This agreement with EBRD is a key milestone in ACC's sustainability journey, supporting our transition to cleaner technologies. The integration of the hydrogen injection at our Ain Sokhna plant will enhance operational efficiency and significantly reduce our carbon footprint."

Egypt: Lafarge Egypt has appointed Khaled El Dokani as its CEO.

El Dokani has worked for Holcim group since 2004. He started his career with the building materials manufacturer as the chief financial officer of Lafarge Algeria. He became the Country Manager for Qatar in 2016. This was followed by Country CEO roles in Iraq, Nigeria and the GCC (UAE, Qatar & Oman). He holds a bachelor's degree in commerce and accounting from Alexandria University.

Egypt: Misr Beni Suef Cement has signed a contract worth nearly US$6m with solar energy supplier IRSC, in cooperation with JINKO and HUAWEI, to establish a solar power plant at its site in Beni Suef Governorate.

The project aims to increase the company’s use of clean energy and reduce the environmental impact of its industrial operations. The capacity of the facility has not been disclosed.

Italy: Cementir Holding has blamed a fall in earnings in the first nine months of 2024 on “lower results achieved in all geographical areas except Egypt.” It added that sales had fallen due to a decrease in volumes in some places and negative currency effects in Türkiye and Egypt. The group’s revenue fell by 5% year-on-year to €1.24bn in the first nine months of 2024, from €1.30bn in the same period in 2023. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) dropped by 9% to €296m from €326m. Sales volumes of cement and clinker remained stable at 7.98Mt. It noted that volumes increases were reported in Türkiye and, to a lesser extent, in Malaysia and the US. However, volumes of ready-mixed concrete rose by 5% to 3.33Mm³ from 3.18Mm³.

Francesco Caltagirone Jr, chair and CEO, said “The results for the first nine months of 2024 are in line with our expectations and, after several quarters of contraction, signs of a market turnaround in some geographies are emerging in the third quarter of 2024. We are strengthening our competitive position through initiatives such as: the investment on Kiln 4 in Belgium, the restart of the second line in Egypt, the acquisition in concrete in Nordic & Baltic, a new limestone quarry in Malaysia, and the repurchase of a large part of the minority interest in our Egyptian subsidiary, to prepare ourselves for any upcoming market opportunities”.

Egypt: Cemex Egypt has inaugurated new decarbonisation equipment at the Assiut cement plant, aligning with its ‘Future in Action’ sustainability strategy. The technology repurposes residual material into energy, incorporating high-efficiency separators and improvements to the calciner process, reducing CO₂ emissions by approximately 32kg/t of cement produced, totalling a reduction of 290,000t/yr.

President of Cemex Egypt & UAE, Yago Castro, said “The inauguration of the decarbonisation equipment at the Assiut plant is a testament to our ongoing efforts to create a more sustainable future for our communities and the planet. At Cemex, we are committed to leading climate action in the industry, using the highest alternative fuels substitution rate in the cement industry in Egypt.”