Displaying items by tag: UAE

UAE: Three mill shells for iron ore processing have been constructed and successfully conveyed to Antwerp today by Hoffmeier. From there, they will embark for a productive life in the UAE.

UAE: Arkan Cement’s profit has grown in the first half of 2019 due to the sale of the closed Emirates Cement plan in February 2019. The subsidiary of Arkan Building Materials also said that it had benefitted from cost controls and a successful insurance claim. Its profit more than doubled to US$12.4min the first half of 2019 from US$4.67m in the same period in 2018. However, its sales revenue fell by 9.6% to US$79 from US$85.2m. It blamed this on local ‘price pressure’ due to a declining export market.

UAE: Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) Cement’s sales fell by 20% year-on-year to US$25.4m in the first half of 2019 from US$31.7m in the same period in 2018. Its profit dropped by 79% to US$0.39m from US$1.88m. Its cost of sales decreased to US$234m from US$29.1m.

UAE: Germany’s Schmersal Group has set up a new subsidiary ‘Schmersal Middle East-FZE’ to focus on business in the Middle East. The new company has opened an office in Dubai to support its development in the region. Uwe Seeger, Director of Asia Pacific Middle East at Schmersal Group said that he expected ‘great potential’ from the area.

Schmersal Group builds switchgears for the protection of machines and plants in industrial automation and lift industry. It is represented with its own corporations and distribution partners in over 60 countries.

UAE: Ahmed Abdullah Al Noman, the chairman of Sharjah Cement & Industrial, has died. He had been in the position since 1993, according to Bloomberg. He was also the chairman of the Bank of Sharjah. The company operates an integrated cement plant as well as paper sack and synthetic rope businesses.

UAE: Al Ain Cement and National Cement have signed a clinker offtake deal. Al Ain Cement, a subsidiary of Arkan Building Materials, will supply clinker to National Cement’s grinding plant in Abu Dabi, according to Gulf Today. The agreement is also intended to help both companies reduce production and logistics costs. The two companies have a combined production capacity of 3.1Mt/yr of clinker and 6.6Mt/yr of cement.

Bangladesh: The Chattogram Customs Authority has seized 30 containers of cement imported under false declaration by Pran Dairy at Chattogram Port. Sources quoted by the Daily Sun newspaper said that the company has attempted to avoid paying the correct import tariffs by falsely declaring the consignment as high-density polyethylene (HDPE) for the UAE. However, when custom officials examined the shipment they found Saudi Arabian-branded cement instead.

A total of 10,200 sacks of 50kg bags of cement were found. The duty payable on HDPE is 32% compared to 91% for cement. The importer was attempting to avoid paying import tariffs of over US$350,000.

Oman: Raysut Cement Company has signed an agreement to buy Sohar Cement for US$60m. The transfer of ownership for all the shares in the company was completed in mid-May 2019, according to the Oman Daily Observer newspaper. Sohar Cement held a 70% stake in a 1.7Mt/yr grinding plant and UAE-based Fujairah Cement Company owned the rest of the shares.

India/China/UAE: UltraTech Cement is looking for buyers for the cement production assets of Binani Cement in China and the UAE. It purchased Binani Cement’s share in joint-ventures in these countries, according to the Hindu newspaper. In China it runs a 3Mt/yr integrated plant and in the UAE it operates a 2.5Mt/yr grinding plant. However, before it was acquired by UltraTech Cement, Binani Cement was unable to sell its stake in its Chinese unit. Attempts to sell the plant in UAE are also expected to be difficult due to market overcapacity.

UAE: The shareholders of RAK Cement have approved the conditional of the Newtec cement plant and Al-Banna quarry in Fujairah. The purchase was originally announced in late February 2019. It planned to buy the assets for around US$123m.