Displaying items by tag: Egypt
Egypt reports September 2015 cement sales
02 October 2015Egypt: Egyptian cement production hit 969,403t in September 2015 and the total amount put forth for sale by the producing companies was 945,315t, according to a Ministry of Supply statement. The amount of cement distributed the domestic market amounted to 1.02Mt and the amount exported came to 8260t.
Wind blowing slowly for Suez Cement
28 September 2015Egypt: Talks between Suez Cement (SCGC) and Egyptian authorities are continuing to ensure the continued financial viability of the SCGC's Wind Farm project, according to Managing Director Bruno Carré.
The company, which is part of Italcementi Group, is currently holding discussions with the Egyptian government to reach specific terms that could help in reaching a solution. This would then help the company present the project to banks, which would provide financing for the project.
According to Carré, negotiations have been ongoing with the government since an Economic Summit that was held in March 2014 in Sharm El-Sheikh. "It's a complex issue and it's not moving as rapidly as we wanted," Carré said. He emphasised, however, that the slow progress is understandable, noting that, on the one hand, the Ministry of Electricity is proactive in ensuring the project happens, as it will help in electricity production. However, the ministry also has to bear in mind the economic balances, and will need to consider the Wind Farm project in relation to other projects, Carré added.
Qalaa Holdings’ revenue climbs by 37.8% in the first half of 2015
22 September 2015Egypt: Qalaa Holdings' revenue in the quarter that ended on 30 June 2015 grew by 33.7% year-on-year to US$267m.
In the first six months of the year, revenue rose by 37.8% to EGP US$515m. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rise by 169% year-on-year to US$72.2m in the first half of 2015. Qalaa's net loss after tax and minority interest improved by 55% to US$10.8m in the second quarter of 2015. In the first half of 2015, its net loss after tax improved by 53% to US$25.1m. This improvement comes despite charges of US$13.1m in the first half of 2015 related to discontinued operations.
Revenue growth was driven by strong performance at TAQA Arabia's fuel marketing arm, which reported 72% top-line growth in the second quarter of 2015 and 73%in the first half of 2015. In the cement division, ASEC Cement's Sudan subsidiary Al-Takamol made a strong contribution to Qalaa's top-line growth. Its revenue grew by 96% in the second quarter of 2015 and by 121% in the first half of 2015. Combined, the energy and cement divisions contributed some 70% of total revenue in the second quarter of 2015.
The first six months of 2015 saw ASEC Holding's sale of its 27.5% stake in Misr Qena Cement, which resulted in a gain from sale of investment equivalent to US$8.56m booked in the second quarter of 2015. The exit from Misr Qena Cement is one of several developments taking place during 2015 that play into Qalaa's risk reduction strategy and its ongoing deleveraging programme. Qalaa's ongoing restructuring efforts continue to reflect positively on its financial performance, with significant improvements at the EBITDA level and a continued narrowing of its bottom-line losses, which improved by 53% year-on-year in the first half of 2015.
Qalaa management has reiterated its strategy for 2015, with its underlining factors being the mitigation of financial risk by significantly deleveraging at the holding and platform company levels, as well as limiting operational risk through the divestment of non-core and non-essential assets while focusing resources on core business and ensuring they have the funding needed to deliver on growth plans.
"Qalaa has repeatedly stressed that deleveraging is one of the company's key strategic goals for 2015 and onward," said Qalaa co-founder and managing director Hisham El-Khazindar. "We remain on track with our divestment programme, the proceeds from which will be utilised to reduce total consolidated debt from the current US$971m, excluding debt associated with Africa Railways and a greenfield megaproject, to around US$639m by the end of 2015."
Sinai Cement reports loss in first half of 2015
01 September 2015Egypt: The Sinai Cement Company (SCC) has reported a US$3.6m net loss in the first half of 2015 compared to a profit of US$11.2m in the same period in 2014. Overall profits declined to US$4.2m from US$23m. On a quarterly basis, the firm lost US$1.3m in the first quarter of the year compared to a net profit of US$4.5m in the same period in 2014. The company operates a cement production facility in North Sinai.
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.
South Valley Cement orders new line from Sinoma
19 August 2015Egypt: South Valley Cement has signed a US$34.7m contract with China's Sinoma for a new cement line.
Misr Beni Suef profit up in first half
14 August 2015Egypt: Misr Beni Suef Cement has announced a net profit of US$6.9m for the first half of 2015, compared to a net profit of US$2.2m in the same period of 2014.
Egypt: Alexandria Cement has reported that, in the first half of 2015, its consolidated net sales grew by 3% year-on-year to US$130m. It incurred consolidated pre-tax net loss of US$9.32m compared to US$14.9m in the same period of 2014. Alexandria Cement's standalone pre-tax net loss was US$6.13m, compared to US$31.4m in 2014.
Suez Cement’s consolidated profit falls to US$15.2m
22 July 2015Egypt: Suez Cement's consolidated net profit fell to US$15.2m in the first half of 2015 compared to US$39.9m in the same period of 2014, according to Arab Finance. Its standalone net profit fell to US$44.6m from US$53.2m in the 2014 period.
UAE: According to a Companies and Markets report, after the economic downturn of 2008 - 2009, the cement market in the UAE is showing a positive rebound and is expected to grow by 7.56%/yr in 2014 - 2019.
The UAE is currently producing double its cement demand. Over 50% of the cement produced in the UAE is exported to Oman, Egypt and other African countries. However, analysts believe that in the coming years the cement export share will decline to meet the growing domestic demand.
The growth of the cement market in the UAE is being primarily led by a surge in construction investment because of the revival of economy. The government will invest US$700bn in the next 15 years towards the infrastructure development in the country. Ahead of Dubai EXPO 2020 and UAE National Vision 2021, major investment will be directed toward transport and power infrastructure.