Displaying items by tag: Senegal

Germany: Heidelberg Materials has appointed Gün Burak Günbey as Senior Project Manager at its Competence Center Cement global research and development hub.

Günbey has worked for the cement sector since the late 2000s. He has held engineering, project management and investment roles at OYAK Bolu Çimento, Limak Cement and Vicat. He became the Group Investment Manager for Vicat Group Türkiye in 2021 and subsequently worked as Project Expert for VICAT Senegal Sococim from 2023.

The Gambia: Minister for Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employment, Baboucar Ousmaila Joof, clarified in a parliamentary session that The Gambia has not increased taxes on cement imported from Senegal. The excise tax applies uniformly to all imported bagged cement to support local manufacturing. Despite challenges in penetrating the Senegalese market due to protectionist policies, The Gambia continues to promote regional trade through a trade liberalization scheme, enabling duty-free access across member states. The scheme has seen rising imports from Senegal, growing significantly from US$11.3m in 2018 to over US$44m in 2022. The minister emphasised the critical role of government support in sustaining the industry amidst challenges such as smuggling and high production costs.

The Minister said “Past studies of the manufacturing sector in the country found that more than 80% of the manufacturing units were operating less than 50% of their installed capacity due to high cost of energy, taxation and limited market space. To spur growth in the industry, the government has decided to support the industry by imposing an excise tax on the importation of bagged cement.”

The Gambia: The Gambian government has released over 300 truckloads of imported cement held at the Senegal border at Farafenni. The Ministry of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employment described the move as a one-time measure intended to alleviate the backlog caused by a rise in import duties, by a factor of six, to US$2.66/bag. The Cement Importers and Traders Association (CITA) welcomed the release of the cement, citing concerns over a possible shortage.

France: Vicat recorded consolidated sales of Euro3.94bn in 2023, up by 8% year-on-year from Euro3.64bn in 2022. Its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) were Euro740m, up by 30% from Euro570m. The producer's energy costs declined by 10% to Euro596m. Vicat noted ‘strong’ growth in sales across all regions except Kazakhstan and India, and in earnings in the US. Its cement volumes rose by 6.3% overall, but contracted in Egypt, France, Senegal and Switzerland.

Algeria: Amouda Cement plans to start exporting cement to the European Union (EU) by end of 2023. It obtained a certificate of conformity to EU standards in March 2023, according to the Algeria Press Service. Djarmoun Fatimé, the cement producer’s Marketing and Communications Director, made the announcement at the Batiwest 2023 trade show taking place in Oran. The company has exported nearly 200,000t of cement and clinker to Mali and Niger since 2021. It is also hoping to target countries in West Africa such as Mauritania and Senegal.

The company operates a 2.5Mt/yr integrated cement plant with two production lines at El Beïda in Laghouat province.

Nigeria: Dangote Cement sold 13.4Mt of cement during the first half of 2023. Its sales volumes outside Nigeria were 5.4Mt, up by 12% year-on-year from 4.9Mt in the first half of 2022. The producer noted 'robust demand' in Ethiopia, the Republic of Congo, Senegal and Zambia. It reported revenues worth US$1.23bn in the first half of 2023, up by 17% from first-half 2022 levels. KOGI Reports News has reported that the producer's profit after tax rose by 3.8% in the half, to US$232m.

Chief executive officer Arvind Pathak said "Dangote Cement delivered positive results in the first half of the year. Our Nigeria operations achieved a 23% quarter-on-quarter recovery in sales during the second quarter of 2023, which was impacted by the general elections and the 'cash crunch.' However, the steep currency devaluation in mid-June slowed this volume recovery and increased already inflated operating costs." He added “We will continue to focus on our strategic growth priorities, hinged on our vision of transforming Africa and building a sustainable future. I am optimistic that our business remains resilient and well positioned to overcome unforeseen macroeconomic headwinds.”

Senegal: Cement production in Senegal by Sococim, Dangote Cement and Ciments du Sahel fell by 5.6% month-on-month in January 2023. According to the National Agency for Statistics and Demography, this drop was due to weaker exports, which fell by 7.0% month-on-month. In contrast local cement sales improved by 6.5%.

Compared to January 2022, January 2023 saw an 11.1% increase in cement production volumes. Exports rose by 58.2% year-on-year, while local sales rose by +7.5%.

Senegal: The International Finance Corporation (ICF) has arranged a Euro242m finance package for SOCOCIM Industries to build a new production line at its Rufisque cement plant in Dakar Region. Euro214m of the loans will be used to decarbonise cement production at the site, including a contribution towards a larger Euro260m upgrade project. The new planned production line will have an alternative fuels substitution rate of 70%, increased energy efficiency and will reduce the plant’s CO₂ emissions.

The finance package organised by the IFC comprises a Euro120m loan from the IFC's own account and Euro122m equivalent in local currency parallel loans from Société Générale Sénégal, CBAO Groupe Attijariwafa Bank, Banque Internationale Pour Le Commerce et l'Industrie du Sénégal, and Ecobank Sénégal. Société Générale Sénégal has been appointed as the administrative agent to manage the local currency financing with the other lenders.

SOCOCIM is a subsidiary of France-based Vicat. Fives revealed in early 2022 that it would supply a 6500t/day kiln line for the Rufisque plant.

Senegal: China-based Sinoma CBMI Construction has commissioned a new production line at Ciments du Sahel’s Kirene plant near Dakar. The new 6000t/day line is intended to replace the plant’s existing third production line. Ciments du Sahel signed a contract with Sinoma CBMI to upgrade the plant in 2020.

Senegal: Germany-based Gebr. Pfeiffer has received an order for an MVR 5000 R-4 vertical roller mill from Morocco-based Ciments de l'Afrique (CIMAF). CIMAF plans to install the mill at its Keur Moussa cement plant in Senegal. The mill has a capacity of 470t/hr, and will be equipped with an SLS 4000 VR classifier.

CIMAF hopes to reduce Senegal's reliance on imported cement from the time of the mill's commissioning, scheduled for early 2024.