Displaying items by tag: Export
Spain: Cementos Cosmos has stopped exports from its Niebla cement plant due to an increase in the price of petcoke. The subsidiary of Brazil’s Votorantim has also implemented a Temporary Regulation of Employment from June 2017 to May 2018 that will enable it to suspend workers or reduce working hours, according to the Huelva Información newspaper. The cement producer says it is waiting for planning permission to install a dosing system for waste fuels that will cut it fuel bill. However, the local community has opposed attempts to use alternative waste fuels previously.
Tajikistan: Cement producers exported around one third of the country’s cement production in the first quarter of 2017. Cement production in January to March 2017 rose by 12% year-on-year to 426,000t of cement, according to the Asia Plus news agency. The country exported 120,400t of cement to Afghanistan, 10,000t to Uzbekistan and 2700t to Kyrgyzstan in the period.
The country has 13 cement plants with a total production capacity of 4.7Mt/yr. Tajik-Chinese joint ventures Huaxin Gayur Cement, Chzhungtsai Mohir Cement and Huaxin Gayur Sughd Cement accounted for 38%, 28% and 16.6% of the local production in the first quarter of the year.
Vietnam: Data from the General Department of Vietnam Customs reports that exports of cement and clinker rose by 11% year-on-year to 4.82Mt in the first quarter of 2016. Its value rose by 6.4% to US$169m. Bangladesh remained the biggest importer of cement and clinker from the country in the three-month period, accounting for 44.8% and 37.7% of Vietnam’s total clinker and cement exports in volume and value, respectively, according to the Viet Nam News newspaper. It was followed by the Philippines, Peru, Mozambique, Malaysia and Taiwan.
Nigerian Government commends Dangote Cement for role in self-sufficiency in cement industry
20 March 2017Nigeria: Kayode Fayemi, the Minister for Solid Minerals Development, has commended Dangote Cement’s role in making Nigeria self-sufficient in cement. He said that it was a success story that the country had moved from importing 60% of its cement to meeting local demand with excess available for export. The Cement Manufacturing Association of Nigeria originally declared the country ‘self sufficient’ for cement in 2012.
“We need to collaborate and partner in these areas at this time that government is trying to reduce the dependence on oil. We need to turn around our mineral resources just as in the cement sector. When you look at our solid mineral industry, there is a wide gap between what we can produce and what is consumed. Imports in these sectors is huge,” said Fayemi. He added that the government wants to replicate the success of the cement industry in other non-oil sectors to diversify the economy. He made the comments as part of a tour to the Ibese plant in Ogun State.
Dangote Cement saw its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fall in 2016 as the Nigerian economy entered a recession. Despite this it grew its revenue and sales volumes with an emphasis on growth outside of its home country. The cement producer exported 0.4Mt of cement in 2016. However, the company has also faced allegations of dumping in Ghana.
Tabuk Cement acquires export license
17 March 2017Saudi Arabia: Tabuk Cement says it has obtained an export license from the Ministry of Commerce and Investment. The licence will be valid for one year, according to Mubasher. Sales volumes of cement fell by 25% year-on-year to 4Mt in February 2017.
Semen Indonesia sales fall in 2017
03 March 2017Indonesia: Semen Indonesia’s sales revenue fell by 3% year-on-year to US$1.95bn in 2016 from US$2.01bn in 2015. Its gross profit fell by 7.4% to US$737m from US$796m. Its overall cement sales volumes remained stable at 28.9Mt although sales from its Vietnamese subsidiary rose by 10.9% to 2.59Mt and its domestic subsidiary Semen Padang saw its sales fall by 3.5% to 6.29Mt. Exports from Indonesia rose by 24.4% to 0.6Mt.
Despite its static cement sales in Indonesia, the cement producer has two new 3Mt/yr cement plant projects respectively underway. The Indarung cement plant in West Sumatra is scheduled for commercial operation in April 2017. The Rembang cement plant in Central Java remains suspended whilst the company seeks environmental clearance. The government revoked permits for the site in late 2016 and it has been the focus of protests. In addition, a 30MW waste heat recovery system at the Tuban plant is scheduled to start operation by the end of 2017.
Tanzania: Sinoma will build a US$1bn cement plant in the coastal city of Tanga that is focused on exports. Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa commended the plans following a meeting with representatives of Sinoma, Hengya Cement and local officials, according to the Xinhua News Agency. 70% of cement produced at the plant will be exported to local countries including Somalia, Kenya, Mozambique, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda. Construction at the site is expected to start in May 2017. The project will also include building a wharf to aid exports.
Semen Padang starts cement exports to Australia
23 February 2017Australia: Semen Padang, a subsidiary of Semen Indonesia, has started exporting cement to Australia. It delivered 22t of cement to Sydney on 21 February 2017 on the Meratus Minahasa V.1705S, according to the Jakarta Post. Commercial director Pudjo Suseno said that the shipment was made in response to demand from potential Australian buyers revealed at the end of 2016. The cement producer has previously sold exports to countries including Bangladesh, the Philippines and Sri Lanka. It exported 396,000t of cement and 90,000t of clinker in 2016.
Vietnamese cement industry blames taxes for rising export prices
23 February 2017Vietnam: Tran Viet Thang, General Director of the Vietnam Cement Industry Corporation (VICEM), has blamed local taxes for increasing the cost of exports from the country. He blamed a government decision to exempt exported cement products from input value-added tax and a 5% export tax, according to the Viet Nam News newspaper. He also said that increasing input material costs and fluctuating foreign exchange rates had caused problems for exporters. Nguyen Quang Cung, Chairman of Vietnam Cement Association, added that cement export volumes had fallen by 5.9% year-on-year in 2016.
Vietnam has set an annual export target of 20 – 35% of the country’s total cement and clinker capacity by the year of 2030. Vietnam’s cement output is expected to reach 120 – 130Mt/yr by 2020 but local consumption is only expected to reach 93Mt/yr, leaving a significant excess.
Cementos Portland Valderrivas makes loss of Euro225m in 2016
07 February 2017Spain: Cementos Portland Valderrivas (CPV) has made a loss of Euro225m in 2016. It increased from a loss of Euro62m in 2015. It reported that its sales fell by 7.6% year-on-year to Euro536m in 2016 from Euro580m in 2015. It attributed this to the sale of its US subsidiary, Giant Cement, falling sales in Tunisia, a decrease in the value of the Tunisian dinar and rising fuel prices.
The cement producer’s sales volumes of cement fell slightly to 7.2Mt in 2016. However, once sales from Giant Cement are removed then, its sales volumes rose by 1.6% due to a 49% increase in exports from Spain. This compensated for declining markets in Spain and Tunisia.
The cement producer said that overall cement consumption in Spain fell by 3.1% to 11.1Mt in 2016, although this was partially offset by exports rising by 5.6% to 9.8Mt. Reduced domestic demand and rising exports have led to clinker production rising slightly in 2016 to 17Mt. It added that cement consumption increases were slowing down in the US, although the regions its subsidiary Giant Cement operates in reported above average increases of almost 11% to November 2016 in the South East, Mid Atlantic and New England regions. In Tunisia it reported that the market fell by 3.9% to 7.2Mt and that exports to Algeria and Libya had fallen.