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Displaying items by tag: Saudi Arabia
Jazan mill enters commissioning
30 January 2013Saudi Arabia: Southern Province Cement Company has announced the start of commissioning of its third mill at its Jazan plant, which started on 27 January 2013. It is expected that commissioning will be completed by 15 March 2013.
Saudi Cement profits rise 31.4% in Q4
16 January 2013Saudi Arabia: Saudi Cement Co has reported a 31.4% rise in its fourth quarter profit due to higher local demand, the company reported in a bourse statement. The cement producer made a net profit of US$74m in the fourth quarter of 2012 compared to US$56.4m in the same period in 2011. Its operating profit rose by 36.8% to US$80.2m from US$58.7m.
Saudi producers report profit growth in 2012
08 January 2013Saudi Arabia: Two of Saudi Arabia's largest cement producers, Yamama and Yanbu, have reported a growth in their profits in 2012.
Yanbu Cement announced a net profit of US$192m for 2012, an increase of 36.1% compared to 2011. The company said that such a performance had been made possible as a result of improved sales and the opening of a fifth production line part way through the year. The company also saw a 32.7% year-on-year increase in its fourth quarter sales to US$54.1m.
Yamama Cement revealed that its full-year net profits for 2012 increased by 11% to US$218m. However in the fourth quarter of the year its profits fell by 9% year-on-year to US$46.4m. The company blamed the lower sale prices achieved during the fourth quarter before the decline was reached.
A recent report by the National Commercial Bank (NCB) said that demand for cement in Saudi Arabia remains strong, with ongoing projects set to sustain growth for several years to come. It forecasted growth in market demand with a rate of 8.2% predicted in 2013 as demand reaches 56Mt. In the longer term NCB predictions expect continued demand growth of 6.3%/yr until 2015.
Yanbu is likely to benefit from any significant growth in demand, as it has three lines with a combined capacity of 1.3Mt/yr currently sitting idle. Predictions that this growth in demand will be disproportionately stronger in the western region could well yield another successful year to come in 2013.
Saudi Cement sees 45% improvement in profit
05 October 2012Saudi Arabia: Saudi Cement Company (SCC) has announced that its net profit for the six months to 30 June 2012 surged by 45% year-on-year, to US$164m from US$113m in the same period of 2011. The company attributed the increase to rising local demand. SCC's operating profit increased to US$166m for the first half of 2012 from US$118m in 2011.
Box International Consulting authorised by Al Jouf Cement
03 October 2012Saudi Arabia: Box International Consulting LP, a US-based cement industry consulting firm, has been issued with a Grant of Authorisation by Al Jouf Cement Company in Saudi Arabia to provide a variety of services to Al Jouf's plant in Turaif.
"Box International is very pleased to work with Al Jouf Cement regarding its plant expansion and to support its vision of furthering the construction sector and cement market in Saudi Arabia," said Thomas D Box, president of Box International.
Box International will assist Al Jouf Cement in developing a third line at the plant with an intended capacity of 5000t/day. This will involve providing consultation and recommendations regarding plant layout and design, process upgrades, equipment, plant and facility specifications and recommendations of vendors, along with the considerations regarding integration of the plant and infrastructure.
Box International will also manage the proposal and bidding process, propose training programmes for staff, manage financing for the expansion and propose an operation and management plan for the completed plant. Currently Al Jouf Cement's plant has one line with a capacity of 5000t/day with a second line under construction with the same capacity.
Qassim Cement profit hits US$82m in H1 2012
26 September 2012Saudi Arabia: Saudi cement producer Qassim Cement has posted a net profit of US$82m for the first half of 2012, a rise of 5.4% from US$77.8m in the same period in 2011. The company attributed the increase to a rise in sales but did not provide any exact sales figures. It reported an operating profit of US$84.1m for the first six months of 2012, a rise of 6.1% from US$79.3m in 2011.
Saudi Qassim Cement to add production line
12 September 2012Saudi Arabia: The management board of Saudi cement producer Qassim Cement (QC)has approved the installation of a new production line with a daily production capacity of 5500t/yr. The company said the move is in line with its efforts to meet growing demand. No financial details were made available.
QC, based in Buraida in eastern Saudi Arabia, was established in 1976 and is one of the eleven listed cement companies operating in the Kingdom.
Middle Eastern cement industry improves in 2012
08 August 2012Middle East: Cement companies in the Middle East witnessed a 24.3% increase in revenues in the first quarter of 2012 to US$1.26bn as construction picked up in certain parts of the region.
The industry's profits rose to US$435.6m in the second quarter of the 2012 financial year, compared to US$359.5m in 2011, a growth of 21.2%. However, according to Global Investment House's report, net margins suffered a fall during the period.
UAE and Oman reported higher revenues due to the better operating environments in both countries. The sales revenue of UAE firms increased by 7.7% to US$258.1m, bringing gross margin back to double digits at 10.5%.
Rizwan Sajan, chairman of Danube Building Materials, said that the UAE construction industry had started to pick up. "The second quarter of this year was much better than the first quarter on positive signs in the UAE," Sajan said. Omani companies witnessed a 16.7% increase in revenue to US$100.3m.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia achieved strong growth of 34.7% in revenue during the quarter, outperforming the UAE, Qatar and Oman. Saudi Arabia is witnessing a significant rise in demand because of its development plan. In March 2011 King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz ordered the construction of 500,000 housing units, as well as the building and expansion of hospitals. He also ordered the injection of capital into specialised credit institutions to facilitate debt write-offs and increase mortgage lending.
It is expected that Saudi Arabia's cement demand will strengthen in 2013, with US$24bn of transport projects under way or in the pipeline. The Haramain High Speed Railway has taken centre stage, with the final contract for the project, worth US$1.4bn, awarded in July 2011. Attention should now turn to the US$7bn Saudi Landbridge project, an east-west rail line that will link Jeddah and Dammam.
Saudi producers Q2 profits rise year-on-year
18 July 2012Saudi Arabia: Southern Province Cement has reported a 9.6% rise in quarterly profits, citing the start-up a second production line at its Tahama plant and increased demand from local markets.
Saudi Arabia's biggest cement producer by market value posted a second-quarter net profit of US$69.9m for the quarter ending on 30 June 2012, compared with US$63.7m for the same period in 2011. However profit was down by 7.75% from the first quarter of 2012, when it was US$75.7m. The company attributed this to instruction by the ministry of commerce and industry decreasing the price that t it is able to sell cement at.
Meanwhile, Saudi Cement Co posted a net profit of US$77.4m for the second quarter, a rise of 36% year-on-year. It cited growing domestic demand for cement and clinker. The Saudi construction sector has been boosted over the past year by ramped-up government spending, including a pledge to build a quarter of a million new houses as well as schools and hospitals.
Saudi Cement Co's profit fell by 10.9% compared to the first quarter of 2012, when it was US$86.8m. The company blamed the decrease on a decline in sales.
Yanbu second quarter profit increases
11 July 2012Saudi Arabia: Yanbu Cement has posted a net profit of US$57.6m for the second quarter of 2012 compared to US$40m for the same period of 2011. This represents a increase of 44% over the US$38.7m made in the previous quarter. The company made a gross profit of US$62.7m in the second quarter, a 48% increase year-on-year.
Over the course of the first half Yanbu's net profit went from US$66.2m in 2011 to US$96m in 2012. Its gross profit for the six months was US$104.8m compared to US$71.7m in 2011, an increase of 46%.
Yanbu said that the the reason for increase in its net profit was an increase in both production and sales, helped by a new cement line and an increase in cement demand.