Displaying items by tag: Expansion

India: JK Cement has commenced production and dispatch of cement from an expansion project at its cement plant in Mangrol, Chittorgarh, Rajasthan. The plant, which started production in 2001 at a rate of 0.75Mt/yr, had a capacity of 1Mt/yr prior to the upgrade. The company has plans to eventually increase the plant's capacity to 3Mt/yr in the future.

One of the largest cement makers in northern India, JK Cement is also a major producer of white cement. It exports to South Africa, Nigeria, Singapore, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, UAE and Nepal.

India: Wonder Cement Limited is planning to expand the capacity of its cement plant at Tehsil Nimbahera in Chittorgarh district of Rajasthan. The company has placed an order with Gebr. Pfeiffer for raw meals and coal mills.

Azerbaijan: Corporation Accord has reported that LLC Gazakh Cement Plant has started clinker production. It reports that the company will increase its rate of production to 70% by mid-September 2014 before ramping up to 100% of its 2500t/day (~0.8Mt/yr) clinker capacity in October 2014.

There are plans for the Sinoma-built plant to undergo capacity expansion in the coming years, with an increase to a capacity of 3Mt/yr of cement in 2017.

Of the five African cement news stories in this edition of Global Cement Weekly, three concern the actions of Nigerian cement giant Dangote Cement. This week it has announced a new captive power plant in Nigeria and the fact that Sephaku Cement, which is owned by Dangote to the tune of 64%, is now in a position to produce cement from its Aganang plant in South Africa. These two items are fairly typical of the type of announcement that Dangote makes in the African market, and the high frequency with which it makes them. It is the third story, of course, which is unusual.

We have heard, for a couple of years now, that Dangote has designs on becoming a pan-African cement giant. Certainly it is the pre-eminent producer in west Africa, with its influence rapidly spreading to the east, north west and south of this vast continent. Few others, (but perhaps South Africa's PPC), can claim to have such influence and, unopposed, there seems no limit to Dangote's ambitions.

This week we heard just how bold those ambitions are. For the first time Africa's No. 1 cement producer has said that it wants to break out of Africa and enter new markets. No longer satisfied with operating at home, a company release has identified the Middle East and Latin America as potential hunting grounds, either for new capacity or acquisitions. The proposed list of LafargeHolcim cast-offs, which includes few assets in either region (LINK), will also have received significant attention in the Dangote boardroom.

The selection of the Middle East and Latin America, however, is not accidental. The Middle East is a high growth area and provides a platform for possible 'pincer-movement' expansion into more impenetrable markets in central Africa like Chad and (South) Sudan. The Middle East also means proximity to India. Dangote may also want to dampen the influence that Indian, Pakistani and Iranian exports have in the region. Potential tie-ups with Dangote's growing operations in east Africa are clear.

The selection of Latin America, on the face of it at least, is less obvious. There are numerous strong and growing local and regional producers. Not least of these is Colombia's Cementos Argos, which has increased its influence in the USA through strategic acquisitions. There are also numerous domestic large Brazilian producers but Dangote may feel like there is room for more to joint the party. Cade, the Brazilian competition authority, has certainly agreed that competition could be improved in Brazil following its recent investigations. Could Brazil be a prime target?

Wherever Dangote decides to play its first non-African card, it will be a major step for the company and African cement producers. How long until we see the first African-owned cement plant on another continent?

World: Dangote Cement is preparing to expand its cement production plants beyond the continent of Africa to the Middle East and Latin American countries. The company is optimistic that the planned investment will propel it to be ranked among the top 10 global cement manufacturers.

"We are currently operating in 14 African countries and we shall soon move across the continent to other continents," said Sunday Adondua, deputy general manager of production at the Ibese plant in Nigeria. "By the time we have consolidated our hold in the African markets, we shall go beyond the borders. Specifically, we are targeting the Middle East and Latin America. The idea is to be a world leader in cement production. We are also planning to start a plant in Mauritania and we are also planning projects in Gabon."

The Dangote Ibese plant in Nigeria has undergone recent upgrades, including the construction of new production lines. Lines 3 and 4 will be commissioned by the end of 2014, which will double the plant's cement production capacity to 12Mt/yr. Line 3 is complete and line 4 is 96% complete. As a result of the works, Dangote's three Nigerian cement plants in Ibese, Obajana and Gboko, will have a combined production capacity of 29.2Mt/yr.

US: FLSmidth has been selected to supply the major equipment for the modernisation of the Holcim (US) Ada plant in Oklahoma. The modernisation of the pyro process is expected to deliver lower emissions of nearly all air pollutants while anticipating an increase in the plant's production capacity.

The contract includes a dryer crusher, a single stage preheater with an ILC-calciner, a dedusting cyclone, a ROTAX-2® kiln, a kiln bypass system, a Duoflex® kiln burner and an FLSmidth® Cross-Bar® cooler. With the installation of two new FLSmidth dust collectors, the project will significantly improve the plant's ability to reduce emissions of particulate matter.

The parties have decided not to disclose the value of the contract.

India: Shiva Cement has received approval for an Interim Business Plan for a 200,000Mt/yr capacity expansion as proposed by the Project Management Committee (PMC). Shiva Cement's board of directors has also approved the project. Besides, the PMC has been authorised to take decisions for leasing, sale, disposal, or to deal with the idle fixed assets in the best interest of the Shiva Cement.

India: Ultratech Cement has announced that it has earmarked US$1.14bn of capital expenditure (capex) towards expansion projects over the next three years.

"Our capex for the 2015 fiscal year is expected to be US$618m, for the 2016 fiscal year we will spend US$497m and for the 2017 fiscal year we will spend US$33.3m," said UltraTech Cement's Chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla at the company's recent Annual General Meeting. The producer currently claims a total cement capacity of 62Mt/yr. "By early 2016, we expect this to scale up to 70Mt/yr when all ongoing projects will be fully commissioned. A judicious mix of internal accruals and borrowings have been used for funding the projects," Birla said.

Speaking about recent acquisitions, Birla said, "The acquisition of the 4.8Mt/yr Gujarat Cement Units from Jaypee Cement Corporation at a cost of US$620m represents a milestone in UltraTech's growth strategy, strengthening its foothold in the growing western market and bolstering its coastal footprint."

Kenya: National Cement Company has received a US$70.2m loan from the International Finance Corporation (IFC). The loan will be used to fund its cement production expansion programme. With the help of the loan, National Cement Company can bolster cement production five-fold to 1.7Mt/yr by 2016 at a cost of US$200m. National Cement Company's CEO Narendra Raval stated that the company aims to close the Kenya's 6Mt/yr cement production gap to stabilise cement prices.

Raval stated that the company's five-fold increase in cement production would see a significant reduction in cement prices in Kenya, where increasing prices have been driving up the cost of construction. However, the entrance of new cement companies in the local market has seen an increase in competition and a gradual reduction in the volume of imported cement.

Venezuela: Cemento Andino's Trujillo plant in Venezuela is set to undergo a US$240m capacity expansion. The plant currently produces around 600,000t/yr of cement. The construction of a new production line is expected to triple Cemento Andino's capacity. The project will take around two years to complete, generating around 500 direct and 1000 indirect jobs.