Displaying items by tag: Plant
Loma Negra rides weakening demand to grow earnings
09 November 2018Argentina: Loma Negra’s net revenue grew by 42.3% year-on-year to US$435m in the first nine months of 2018 from US$305m in the same period in 2017. Its adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose by 46.5% to US$113m from US$77.3m. Overall, its cement masonry and lime sales volumes remained stable at 5.1Mt but sales in Paraguay fell by 4.2% to 0.42Mt. Sales volumes fell in both Argentina and Paraguay in the third quarter of 2018.
Sergio Faifman, Loma Negra’s chief executive officer (CEO), said, “Our core Argentine Cement business, delivered both revenue growth and adjusted EBITDA margin expansion notwithstanding the challenging macro backdrop in the country in which our volume declined at a mid single-digit pace year-on-year in line with overall industry performance.”
The subsidiary of Brazil’s InterCement said that it is moving ahead with building a new US$350m production line at its L’Amalí plant. The new line will have a clinker production capacity of 5800t/day. The project is being built by China’s Sinoma International Engineering and it is expected to be completed by early 2020. Main equipment is expected to arrive at the site by the end of 2018 and the steel structure is under construction.
Cambodia cement plants produce 3.67Mt in first nine month of 2018
09 November 2018Cambodia: The four local cement plants produced 3.67Mt of cement in the first nine months of 2018. The Ministry of Industry and Handicraft said that two more plants will open by December 2018, according to the Phnom Penh Post newspaper. Kampot Cement produced 2.21Mt, Cambodia Cement Chakrey produced 1.22Mt, Chip Mong Insee Cement produced 0.12mt and Battambang Conch Cement produced 0.11Mt. The new plants to be opened are Southern Cement (Cambodia) and Thai Boon Rong (Cement).
BUA Group completes upgrade at Obu plant
09 November 2018Nigeria: BUA Group has completed an upgrade at its Obu plant at Okpella in Edo State. The new 3Mt/yr production line has increased the plant’s production capacity to 6Mt/yr, according to the Punch newspaper. The completed project follows the inauguration of the company’s new 1.5Mt/yr production line at its Kalambaina cement plant in Sokoto State.
LafargeHolcim Paulding cement plant to build wind turbines
08 November 2018US: LafargeHolcim plans to build three wind turbines at its Paulding cement plant in Ohio to power the unit. Jamie M Gentoo, chief executive officer (CEO) of US cement operations, said that using distributed wind energy at the plant would be a first for the company in North America.
Constructing turbines will begin in December 2018 in partnership with One Energy. The three Paulding turbines are expected to generate more than 12MkWh/yr and should eliminate the equivalent of more than 9000t/yr of CO2.
As part of a community outreach project in conjunction with the turbine build, LafargeHolcim will create three US$5000 Megawatt Scholarships (one per turbine for a total of US$15,000/yr) to be awarded each year the turbines are in operation. The Megawatt Scholarships will be awarded annually to local high school graduates pursuing a two-year or four- year STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) degree. Additionally, One Energy will pay US$27,000/yr annually in local property taxes.
India: The Industries Department of Himachal Pradesh is planning to re-advertise the tender for a white cement plant project at Sikridhar in the Chamba district. The state government received no bids for the project in the last round of bidding, according to the Tribune newspaper. Only ACC expressed any interest in the process by buying the big papers.
The local government wants the project to be awarded by May 2019 and it is expected to cost around US$138m. The project is a long running scheme that was first suggested in 2002.
Bad loans written off at ARM Cement further devalue company
06 November 2018Kenya/Tanzania: The administrators of ARM Cement have written off loans worth around US$210m to Maweni Limestone, a subsidiary in Tanzania. The decision by the PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) administrators has significantly reduced the cement producer’s assets to US$140m from US$362m, according to the Business Daily newspaper. In a report PWC alleges that ARM Cement had treated its debt to Maweni Limestone as a performing loan, despite the fact that the subsidiary had repeatedly defaulted on it, effectively misleading investors as to the value of the company. The write-off has left ARM Cement’s creditors, including the UK government-backed CDC Group, in negative equity to a value of around US$24m.
Other irregularities that have been discovered amount to US$1.5m. These issues include alleged outstanding director pay, payments to mystery customers and a payment of US$0.4m for ‘fixtures and fittings.’
ARM Cement owns an integrated cement plant at Tanga and a grinding plant in Dar es Salaam that is currently not in operation. It is also building a grinding plant in Tanga that remains unfinished. The cement producer was placed into administration in late August 2018.
Shareholders approve white cement plant sale by Helwan Cement
06 November 2018Egypt: The shareholders of Helwan Cement have approved the sale of its white cement plant in Minya Governorate to Emmar Industries. Helwan Cement, a 99.5% subsidiary owned by HeidelbergCement and Suez Cement, previously said that the sale was part of its plan to restructure the business and improve its financial position.
Worker dies at UltraTech Cement’s Reddipalayam plant
06 November 2018India: A welder has died at UltraTech Cement’s Reddipalayam plant in Tamil Nadu. The contract worker died following a fall from a height of 8m, according to the New Indian Express newspaper. Relatives and local residents staged a protest following the incident.
Kyrgyz president opens cement plant in Aravan
05 November 2018Kyrgyzstan: President Sooronbai Jeenbekov has opened a cement plant in Aravan as part of a trip to the Osh region, according to the 24 Kg News Agency. The US$88m project was previously reported as having a cement production capacity of 2500t/day.
Jordan Cement Company in legal dispute over land
05 November 2018Jordan: Jordan Cement Company is in a legal dispute with local landowners over land ‘illegally’ acquired near its Fuheis plant. The plaintiffs argue that forgery was used by the company in acquiring land, according to Roya TV. The subsidiary of Switzerland’s LafargeHolcim operates two integrated plants, at Fuheis and Rashadiyah.