Displaying items by tag: Plant
Bua Group spends US$500m on 3Mt/yr greenfield cement plant
07 November 2014Nigeria: Bua Group International has invested US$500m in a 3Mt/yr capacity greenfield cement plant in Okpella, Edo State. The Obu Cement Plant will take Bua's cement capacity to 5.3Mt/yr when it is commissioned in February 2015.
Bua Group already operates a 0.5Mt/yr capacity cement plant in Sokoto State via its subsidiary, Sokoto Cement. The plant currently operates at 100% capacity. Bua Group is also constructing a new 1.5Mt/yr capacity in the same state. In Edo State, Bua Group currently owns the 0.3Mt/yr capacity Edo Cement Plant.
The Obu plant is planned for conclusion and commissioning within the first quarter of 2015, and is predicted to hire over 1000 direct labour and thousands of indirect labour, according to Yusuf Binji, executive director, project and technical, Bua Group, Okpella, Edo State.
Italian prime minister Matteo Renzi officially opens new Italcementi Rezzato production line
05 November 2014Italy: Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi officially switched on the new kiln at the Italcementi cement plant in Rezzato on 5 November 2013. The 1Mt/yr plant has undergone an extensive production and environmental upgrade that cost Euro150m.
"The new Rezzato plant is the best expression of the Group's strategy: industrial development combined with a firm commitment to innovation and environmental performance," said Italcementi CEO Carlo Pesenti.
He added that the Rezzato upgrade was part of the Pact for the Environment signed by Italcementi and the Ministry in July 2009, which set out an investment programme for the renewal of our industrial network and attainment of ambitious environmental targets. Other targets include Italgen, the Italcementi Group company that produces energy entirely from renewable sources. The Italcementi investment plan has also seen a technical upgrade at the Matera cement plant.
Products manufactured in Rezzato include white cement and the basic material for a new biodynamic cement to be used to construct the external structure of Palazzo Italia at Expo 2015. The Rezzato production facility currently employs 118 people and provides work for an additional 160 people in ancillary industries.
Ecuador: Peru's Gloria Yura Cement plans to invest US$230m in the construction of a new cement plant in Ecuador, according to the minister of Industry and Productivity in Ecuador, Ramiro Gonzalez.
Colombia: Cementos Argos plans to use more than 26,000t/yr of used tyres generated in the Valle de Aburra region as fuel for its cement plant. Tyres could be incorporated in Cementos Argos processes by the end of 2014 or the beginning of 2015. Executives have commented that one of the main obstacles is the collection of used tyres.
Egypt/Brazil: Egypt's Arabian Cement has entered a joint venture for a cement grinding plant with Brazil's Cementos La Union. The project is worth US$28.8m.
Arabian Cement's board of directors approved the venture with Cementos Relampago, an affiliate of Cementos La Union, 'to establish a cement grinding plant in Northwest Brazil with a total capacity of 230,000t/yr.' The US$28.8m investment cost will be financed 50% through debt and equity. Arabian Cement's contribution would be US$8.76m, representing 60% of the total paid-in capital.
Cimerwa to increase cement production by 500,000t/yr
03 November 2014Rwanda: Rwanda's sole cement producer, Cimerwa, plans to increase its production capacity to 600,000t/yr when ongoing expansion works are completed early in 2015, according to Busi Legodi, Cimerwa's CEO. Legodi said that over 94% of the US$170m works have already been completed, with electrical installations and some minimal mechanical works remaining.
"The plant should be ready by the end of the first quarter of 2015," said Legodi. "Once completed, our production capacity will increase from the current 100,000t/yr of cement to 600,000t/yr." Market demand for cement currently stands at about 500,000t/yr and the country depends mostly on imports.
Meanwhile, Cimera has rebranded its corporate identity as it marks 13 years of existence. According to Sam Kasule, the Cimerwa commercial manager, the new corporate identity reflects the direction the firm is headed.
"Our new corporate identity is significant and suits the company's future plans and business focus as we look to expand our production capacity in coming months. We are also looking at growing our external markets in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Burundi," said Kasule.
He noted that the firm would also deepen its corporate social investment programmes, thanks to partnership with its strategic investor PPC, to deliver technical expertise, ensure sustainable production and meet market demand.
Cementos Pacasmayo’s profit drops by 17% in Q3
28 October 2014Peru: Cementos Pacasmayo has reported a 17% drop in profit year-on-year for the third quarter of 2013 due to fall in cement sales. Its profit fell to US$13.9m in the July to September 2014 quarter from US$16.7m in the same period of 2013. Profit for the nine-month period rose by 3.4% to US$41.6m.
Net sales from the Peruvian cement producer fell by 6% year-on-year to US$108m for the third quarter of 2014. Sales remained static for the year to date. Consolidated adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 3.4% to US$29.9m for the third quarter of 2014. A similar fall in consolidated adjusted EBITDA was noted for the year to date. Cement production fell by 7.5% to 578,000t for the third quarter. Overall for the year to date cement production remained static at 1.73Mt.
In its earnings release Cementos Pacasmayo reported that its new cement plant in Piura should begin operation in the second half of 2015. The US$385m plant will have a production capacity of 1.6Mt/yr of cement and 1Mt/yr of clinker.
Semen Indonesia builds Tuban power plant
28 October 2014Indonesia: Semen Indonesia has commenced the construction of a 30.6MW waste heat recovery power generator (WHRPG) in an effort to reduce the company's electricity costs.
The facility will be located at Semen Indonesia's cement plant in Tuban, East Java and will cost US$52.9m. The power plant will make use of the heat generated from the cement plant. Construction is expected to take 26 months. Operations are expected to start in the second half of 2016.
In 2013, Semen Indonesia signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Japan's JFE Engineering Corporation for the WHRPG construction. "This will be the first project in Indonesia where waste heat in the whole area is utilised to supply the power plant," said Semen Indonesia president director Dwi Soetjipto. The company has applied similar technology at its Indarung facility in Padang, West Sumatra, on a smaller scale. Indarung power plant's capacity is 8.5MW and it started operation in 2011.
Once the power plant is completed, Semen Indonesia will be able to supply about one third of the company's energy needs at the Tuban plant. It could save US$9.95m/yr in electricity costs.
Canada: McCinnis Cement's US$1.1bn cement plant, which is under construction in Quebec's Gaspe region, could be cancelled if work is suspended in order to conduct environmental hearings.
Lafarge Canada and two non-profit groups mounted a legal challenge in the summer of 2013 after Quebec's environment minister authorised the project without an environmental assessment hearing. In a legal filing McInnis said that the project is subject to old environmental rules that were in place when it was first proposed more than 20 years ago.
Successive provincial governments have confirmed many times that the project is not subject to current rules that require such hearings.
Kohat Cement's profit up by 11%
28 October 2014Pakistan: 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.