Displaying items by tag: Kidnap

Derba MIDROC Cement signed a contract with Sinoma International Engineering in recent weeks to build a US$282m upgrade at its integrated Derba cement plant in Oromia. The move is the latest in a steady stream of projects that have been announced in Ethiopia over the last few years. Other recent developments include a deal in July 2022 by businessman Getu Gelete to buy PPC’s stake in Habesha Cement and plans in August 2022 by investor Worku Ayetenew to build a US$1bn cement plant with a production capacity of 12,000t/day. Alongside these capital intensive projects, the government has been trying to regulate the price of cement through measures such as setting fixed prices, limiting the volumes that individuals can buy and asking producers to cut distributors out of the supply chain.

To summarise some of the plant projects over the last couple of years, the Derba MIDROC Cement upgrade project intends to double the production capacity of the integrated Derba cement plant in Oromia to 15,000t/day. The other big ongoing project was announced in early 2021 when East African Holding and China-based West China Cement agreed to build a 10,000t/day plant at Lemi in Amhara Region. East African Holding is the parent company of National Cement, one of the larger producers in the country. Then in July 2021 Sinoma International Engineering’s subsidiary Suzhou Sinoma signed an initial deal with Western International Holdings, West China Cement’s international arm, to build the plant. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed visited the construction site in March 2022 to lay the foundation stone but no commissioning date has been disclosed so far. Based on Sinoma’s assessment when it signed the contract, construction would take around 20 months, so a commissioning date by late 2023 seems reasonable. There are also a number of other projects that have been announced in the local press such as Abay Industrial Development Share Company plant at Dejen. FLSmdith said that the contract to build the 5000t/yr plant became effective in late 2020. However, not much more has been released publicly. Another project at Berenta in Amhara is also reportedly under construction.

The Global Cement Directory 2022 places the country’s production capacity at around 12Mt/yr. This compares to 15Mt/yr from 13 companies as reported by a local news source although this figure is likely to also include grinding plants. Yet the same source also placed the actual working capacity at 6Mt/yr due to old machinery and poor maintenance. As for the market in Ethiopia, Dangote Cement said that the sales from its Mugher plant rose by 1.8% year-on-year to 1.7Mt in the first nine months of 2022 and that the unit was running at full capacity in the third quarter. It reckoned that it held a 42% market share during this period, out of a total market of around 4.2Mt. Previously it said that the total market for the whole year was 7Mt in 2021.

Unfortunately it also mentioned issues with security in the region. This became a live issue this week with news that at least 30 employees of Dangote Cement were reportedly kidnapped in early December 2022 by an armed group that calls itself the Oromo Liberation Army. This is particularly sad for the company given that its country manager was shot dead in 2018. Two employees of the Mugher Cement plant were also taken hostage by the same group in October 2022 although thankfully they were later freed.

A number of projects have been announced in Ethiopia over the last few years but they appear to be taking a while to materialise. This time though a couple of the projects do seem to be on the way and the change in ownership of Habesha Cement seems to suggest a renewed vigour to the local construction market since the government opened up investment. Unfortunately, security concerns are pressing as demonstrated by what happened to some of Dangote Cement’s staff this week.

Pakistan: Three workers from DG Cement’s Dera Ghazi Khan cement plant who were kidnapped have been rescued following negotiation. Tribal elders spoke to the Laadi gang that abducted the workers and no ransom was paid, according to the Dawn newspaper. The gang’s demands included establishing a school and building water reservoirs in the area. The gang kidnapped the workers in early April 2022. 12 associates of the gang have been detained.

Pakistan: Three DG Khan Cement workers have been kidnapped by the local Ladi gang from the company’s Dera Ghazi Khan cement plant. The Dawn newspaper has reported that the employees has been inspecting the plant’s raw materials belt when the kidnap occurred.

India: The nine-year-old son of an ACC executive has returned home after being kidnapped in Bargarh, Odisha. The child was playing locally on the evening of 2 January 2022 when two men on a motorcycle abducted him, according to the New Indian Express newspaper. They left a ransom note demanding around US$13,400 for his return. Following a search, police found the boy roaming the countryside shortly before midnight on the same day. They believe the assailants abandoned their plans after learning that the authorities had effectively prevented their escape by sealing the local area. The hunt for the suspects continues.

Nigeria: Two Indian nationals working for Dangote Cement who were kidnapped at the end of June 2016 have been released. The workers were abducted from Boko, near Makurdi in Benue state while they were travelling to work. The External Affairs Ministry said in a statement that they believed that local criminals were involved and that there was no interaction with the terrorist group Boko Harem.

Nigeria: Two Indian cement workers for Dangote Cement have been reportedly kidnapped in Gboko, Benue State. Civil engineer Sai Srinivas and his colleague Anish Sharma were abducted while travelling in a convoy of cars to the local Dangote cement plant on 29 June 2016, according to The Hindu newspaper. Srinivas has worked for Dangote Cement for three years. Previously he worked for Aditya Birla group in Raipur, India.

Syria: Most of a group of 300 cement workers kidnapped from the Al-Badiyeh Cement Company have been released. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said that all the workers had been released with the exception of 30 guards at the plant. The Islamic State-affiliated Aamaq news agency added that the majority of the workers were released after questioning about their religious and political backgrounds. It said that four workers who belonged to the Druse community were killed and 20 other pro-government gunmen were still being held.

Syria: Over 200 workers and contractors from the Al-Badiyeh Cement Company have been kidnapped by a group affiliated to Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). The Ministry of Industry said in a statement to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) that the Ministry has been in contact with the company’s administration to inquire about the abductees and to lobby for their release. So far no contact has been made.

SANA also reported that a local reconciliation official in Jeiroud, where the cement plant is located, saw around 125 of the company’s abducted workers being transported on board ISIS vehicles that headed towards Tal Dakweh on the outskirts of eastern Ghouta, a region where ISIS groups are active.