Displaying items by tag: India

India: Dalmia Cement Bharat plans to increase its market presence in Goa as part of its Indian expansion. The Goa market will be catered to by its newly-commissioned, US$201m, 2.5Mt/yr plant in Belgaum, according to M K Swaminathan, Executive Director - Sales.

Cement consumption in Goa is expected to receive a boost from ongoing infrastructure projects and demand will likely grow by 5 – 6% in the coming year. To grab a larger market share, Dalmia Cement has started beefing up its dealership network in the state through talks with 15 dealers initially. The company will support them with end-to-end marketing, technical and logistics support.

India: JK Lakshmi Cement has gained approval to establish a 1.5Mt/yr grinding plant with a 1000m³/day 10MW diesel generator (DG) set and autoclaved aerated concrete block unit in Kishanganj, Bihar for US$46.3m.

"Based on the recommendations of the Expert Appraisal Committee, the Environment Ministry has given environmental clearance to JK Lakshmi Cement's proposed project in Bihar," said a senior Environment Ministry official.

The clearance was given with certain conditions. Among the conditions specified, JK Lakshmi Cement has been asked to develop a green belt in at least 33% of the area in and around the cement plant, as per the norms. The company has also been asked to install air monitoring devices, control secondary fugitive emissions and reduce the impact of transport of the raw materials and end products on the surrounding environment, among others.

JK Lakshmi Cement has more than 9Mt/yr of installed cement capacity in India. In the first quarter of its 2015-2016 fiscal year, the company reported a standalone net loss of US$3.62m due to the subdued market and higher costs, compared to a net profit of US$6.25m in the April - June period of the previous fiscal year.

India: Overseas investments or the outward foreign direct investment by Indian companies more than halved to US$1.24bn in September 2015, according to media reports. This compared to US$3.12bn in September 2014. In August 2015, the outward foreign direct investment by Indian companies stood at US$2.19bn.

Out of the total US$1.24bn invested abroad, some US$137m was invested in equity, US$366m through loans and US$738m in the form of issue of guarantee. Major investors overseas during the month included Ultratech Cement in the Middle East (US$234m), Tata Power in Singapore (US$90m) and Tata Communications in Singapore (US$67.9m).

India: Sagar Cements produced 122,642t in September 2015, up by 7% from 114,693t in September 2014. Cement sales grew by 6% to 115,225t in September 2015 from 108,611t in September 2014.

India: Reliance Infrastructure plans to sell its cement business as part of plans to cut debt through the sale of non-core assets.

As many as 10 global companies have been sounded for a 100% stake of Reliance Cement, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Reliance Infrastructure. These include CRH, Cemex, HeidelbergCement, GE, Blackstone, Carlyle and KKR. Local companies JK Cement and Prism Cement may also be interested. Reliance Group has appointed Morgan Stanley as banker to scout for buyers for Reliance Cement.

The sale of the cement business is aimed at reducing debt by selling non-core assets. Reliance Infra's debt stood at around US$3.86bn on 31 March 2015. Reliance believes that the sale will help reduce its debt by 20 – 25%. It is looking at a valuation of US$769 – 922m for Reliance Cement, which has a cement production capacity of 5.6Mt/yr.

Reliance Cement started operations in 2007 and has plants in Maihar in Madhya Pradesh (2.8Mt/yr), Kundanganj in Uttar Pradesh (2.2Mt/yr) and Butibori in Maharashtra (500,000t/yr). It is also developing a 5Mt/yr greenfield plant at Wani in Maharashtra.

India: The real estate developers' association Credai has moved the Competition Commission of India (CCI) against cement manufacturers that it claims have unduly increased the cost of cement. Credai has also highlighted the violation of CCI's 'cease and desist' order of 2012 by cement manufacturers, according to a statement from the industry body.

Credai said that the cost of raw materials used in cement manufacturing fell between January 2015 and September 2015, but that cement companies have not passed on the benefit to customers. Hinting at a cartel-like operation, it was also alleged that cement companies seem to be working together to control supply and prices. Housing and other real estate sectors account for nearly half of the cement demand in India. Despite low demand, cement prices have jumped by 20 – 40% in top cities across the country in the past couple of months.

"It is unfair that the cement manufacturers indulge in practices that control the prices of cement. The CCI has warned cement manufacturers in the past as well, but it is unfortunate that they seem to be continuing with their price and market manipulation," said Credai national president Getamber Anand.

At its annual general meeting in September 2015, Credai's board took the decision to stop procurement of cement from companies like UltraTech, Lafarge and others that unilaterally increased cement prices in the past month.

India: The Madhav Nagar police raided an industrial unit manufacturing fake cement in the industrial area of Dewas Road, Maharashtra and arrested five people working in the unit on 3 October 2015. The accused allegedly filled empty UltraTech Cement bags with ACC cement and then passed it off on the market as original.

The police also seized hundreds of sacks of fake cement kept in the cement plant, a truck and equipment used in the process. According to the Indian National Press Bombay, the accused collected expired cement bags kept in storehouses and thereafter mixed spurious substances with it, then repackaged the bags with logos of a reputed cement company. They then sold it at a reduced price to the public and wholesalers. The police also found thousands of empty sacks of leading cement companies inside the factory premises.

India: HeidelbergCement India has reported that Daniel R Fritz has tendered his resignation from the position of Director of the company with effect from close of business on 29 September 2015.

India: Brazilian cement major Votarantim Cimentos, InterCement Austria Holding and Camargo Corrêa have settled a case with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for alleged violation of takeover protocols regarding Shree Digvijay Cement. They have paid over US$115,000 in settlement charges.

SEBI had initiated adjudication proceedings against the three companies over the violation of provisions Substantial Acquisition of Shares and Takeovers (SAST) regulations. It was alleged that the entities failed to comply with certain provisions of the SAST regulations while making an open offer for acquisition of 36.7 million shares, representing a 26% stake in Shree Digvijay Cement.

UAE: Everest Industries of India is set to start production from its first overseas greenfield facility in the UAE in the first quarter of 2016, according to a company statement.

"The facility will be used to manufacture fibre cement boards and cater to our export markets in West Asia and Africa," said Manish Sanghi, Managing Director. Set up at an investment of US$150m, it will be able to produce up to 72,000t/yr of cement fibre boards.