Displaying items by tag: GCW174

Pakistan: Kohat Cement has posted a net profit of US$6.63m in the quarter that ended on 30 September 2014, up by 11% year-on-year compared to US$5.98m during the corresponding period of the previous year. The company attributed the results to better income on cash placements and lower financial charges.

During the first quarter of the 2015 financial year, sales revenues increased by 11% to US$28.1m amid higher cement prices and a slight increase in volumetric sales, which were up by 5% year-on-year. However, Kohat Cement's reduced gross margins restricted earnings growth. The gross margins in the first quarter of 2015 were recorded at 35.5% against 38% in 2014, down by 250%. The decline in gross margins was caused due to the increase in electricity prices by more than 50%.

The quarterly statement also revealed that the company is in the process of installing a 15MW waste heat recovery (WHR) power plant, which is expected to reduce production costs. The plant, which will meet 30% of Kohat Cement's energy requirements, is expected to come online by the end of the 2015 financial year. The project will cost US$19.4m, 80% of which will be financed through debts.

Europe: Lafarge and Holcim have formally notified the European Commission (EC) of their proposed merger in order to obtain regulatory approval. With this notification, Holcim and Lafarge have now completed all necessary notifications with regulatory authorities worldwide.

During pre-notification discussions, which Lafarge and Holcim have had with the EC, the list of proposed assets for divestment in Europe has been slightly amended. Compared with the list of assets presented on 7 July 2014, the two companies now propose to retain Lafarge's Mannersdorf plant in Austria and to divest all of Holcim's operations in Slovakia.

In the rest of the world, the proposed list of assets remains the same, with the exception of the Philippines, as announced by the boards of directors of Lafarge Republic Inc. and of Holcim Philippines Inc.

In parallel to the regulatory process, Holcim and Lafarge are in ongoing negotiations with potential buyers of the assets that are proposed for divestment.

Brazil: Provale, a manufacturer of calcium carbonate, plans to enter the well and white cement markets. It is setting up a 190,000t/yr capacity cement grinding plant at Cachoeiro de Itapemirim, Esprito Santo. Provale is currently waiting for environmental clearance to start ground breaking in a 50,000m² area. US$4m of the project funding is coming from the US private equity company, Resource Capital Funds, which has bought a 22% stake in Provale. President Emilio Nemer Neto said that talks with a prospective partner in Europe for the acquisition of clinker are underway.

Kenya: EAPCC has posted a net loss of US$4.32m for the year that ended on 30 June 2014. The company said that it had been hurt by price competition, high staff costs and the weakening Kenyan shilling. In the year that ended 30 June 2013, EAPCC posted a net profit of US$18.9m.

EAPCC said that it hopes to capitalise on the growing construction industry and plans to spend US$27.9m in the coming year on new investments. "The company has not been left behind and is aggressively investing in new machinery and equipment to increase efficiency and capacity," said EAPCC. However, it added that, "The market will continue to be highly competitive and is likely to see declining prices for the foreseeable future."

Mexico: Cemex has announced that it will not make an offer to buy the assets being sold by Holcim and Lafarge in light of their merger. Instead, Cemex plans to focus on organic growth, generating more cash flow and reducing its leverage, according to general manager Fernando A Gonzalez Olivieri. Cemex's aims are to once again reach earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of US$4.70bn in 2016 or 2017 and to recover its investment grade via leverage reduction.

Canada: The Lafarge cement plant near Brookfield, Nova Scotia has been deemed a 'viable disposal solution' for getting rid of treated hydraulic fracturing wastewater being held in storage ponds at Atlantic Industrial Services (AIS) in Debert, Nova Scotia.

The pilot project, which was approved in April 2013 by the Nova Scotia Department of Environment, permitted the transport of 2ML of treated wastewater from the AIS holding ponds for use as a coolant in the kiln at the Lafarge plant, where it was evaporated at 700°C.

"When I met with the community last April, I said that we would update people on the results of the pilot and making the results available online is a good way to keep everyone informed," said the Environment Minister Randy Delorey. "I'm pleased with the findings from the pilot. The results confirm that evaporation provides Nova Scotians with a viable disposal solution."
Before being evaporated in the kiln, the wastewater had been treated for naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORMS) and put through reverse osmosis. The water was analysed and it meets the Canadian Council of Environment Ministers and Health Canada guidelines for release into a freshwater source. As part of the project, Lafarge did water testing before, during and after evaporation. The tests showed comparable results for cooling water normally used by the plant from the nearby Shortts Lake.

AIS is now requesting approval to remove and treat another five million litres of the waste water at the Lafarge plant. A decision is expected from the department in the near future and, if approved, any terms and conditions would be the same as the pilot project, requiring dual treatment of the wastewater before evaporation.

Approximately 10ML of wastewater remains in two ponds at the AIS site. Triangle Petroleum also has 20ML of wastewater in two holdings ponds in Kennetcook, Nova Scotia. The wastewater at both areas is from high-pressure hydraulic fracturing that took place in 2007 and 2008.

Mexico: Cemex has announced that its consolidated net sales reached approximately US$4.1bn during the third quarter of 2014, an increase of 4% on a like-to-like basis for the ongoing operations and adjusting for currency fluctuations, versus the comparable period in 2013. On a like-for-like basis, operating earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 3% during the quarter to US$767m versus the same period in 2013. The increase in consolidated net sales on a like-for-like basis was due to higher volumes in Mexico, the US and the South, Central America and the Caribbean and Asia regions, as well as higher prices of its products in most operations.

Net operating earnings before other expenses in the third quarter increased by 5% to US$491m. Operating EBITDA increased, on a like-for-like basis, by 3% during the quarter to US$767m. Cemex reported a narrower controlling interest net loss of US$106m during the third quarter of 2014, from a loss of US$155m in the same period of 2013.

"We are pleased with the year-to-date trends in our consolidated volumes and prices, despite the more challenging economic conditions during the quarter, especially in Europe," said Fernando A González, CEO. "We continue to see favorable medium-term growth prospects for our regions, especially in the Americas, where we expect most of our mid-term EBITDA growth. We are comfortable with the steps taken so far towards attaining an investment-grade capital structure target both on the financial and operating side."

Net sales in Mexico increased by 4% in the third quarter of 2014 to US$803m compared with US$776m in the third quarter of 2013. Operating EBITDA decreased by 1% to US$245m versus the same period of 2013.

Cemex's operations in the US reported net sales of approximately US$1.0bn in the third quarter of 2014, up by 13% from the same period in 2013. Operating EBITDA increased by 74% to US$136m in the quarter versus US$78m in the same quarter of 2013.

In Northern Europe net sales for the third quarter of 2014 decreased by 3% to approximately US$1.1bn, compared with approximately US$1.2bn in the third quarter of 2013. Operating EBITDA was US$144m for the quarter, 11% lower than the same period of 2013.

Third-quarter net sales in the Mediterranean region were US$400m, 7% higher compared with US$375m during the third quarter of 2013. Operating EBITDA increased by 4% to US$81m for the quarter versus the comparable period in 2013.

Cemex's operations in South, Central America and the Caribbean reported net sales of US$585m during the third quarter of 2014, representing a decrease of 2% over the same period of 2013. Operating EBITDA decreased by 6% to US$199m in the third quarter of 2014, from US$210m in the third quarter of 2013.

Its operations in Asia reported a 9% increase in net sales for the third quarter of 2014 to US$151m, versus the third quarter of 2013 and operating EBITDA for the quarter was US$40m, up by 11% from the same period of 2013.

Tanzania: The chairman and president of Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, is set to invest in developing the Mbinga Coal Mine in west Tanzania to power the Mtwara cement plant. The sale of excess coal will be used to finance cement exports from Tanzania.

According to reports, Dangote Cement plans to take advantage of the surge in local demand for cement amidst increased construction activity in the region using its 3Mt/yr capacity Mtwara cement plant when it is completed. Dangote Cement expects cement demand in Tanzania to surge in the near future due to the country's improving economic performance.

South Korea: According to local media, Korea's cement firms have received US$127m from the Japanese government for three years from 2011 to 2013 for bringing in Japanese coal that is thought to have been contaminated with radioactivity.

According to data submitted by the Environment Ministry to Lee In-young of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy, who is also a member of the National Assembly's environment labour committee, four domestic cement firms (Ssangyong Cement Industrial, Tongyang Cement and Energy, Lafarge Halla Cement and Hanil Cement) brought in 3.69Mt of coal from Japan from 2011, when the Fukushima nuclear accident occurred, until 2013. In return, they received a total of US$127m for waste disposal.

This is the first time that the amount of money Korea's cement firms received from importing Japanese coal has been revealed. Japanese coal imported to Korea stood at 1.11Mt, worth US$39.9m in 2011, 1.23Mt or US$45.5m in 2012 and 1.35Mt or US$42.2m in 2013. The amount has continued to increase over the past three years.

"The problem is that 20-73Bq/kg of radioactive cesium was detected in the Japanese coal," said Lee. "Though this level is lower than the safety threshold (370Bq), there is the possibility of cesium exposure in everyday life, given that coal is used in cement as well as other construction and industrial materials." If the level of cesium that is radioactive exceeds the safety threshold and permeates into body, it can cause osteomyelitis or thyroid cancer, among others.