Displaying items by tag: Vietnam

Vietnam: Total clinker and cement sales rose by 9.8% year-on-year to 15.71Mt in the first quarter of 2016, the Building Material Department under the Ministry of Construction has said. The sales figure represents 20.7% of the country’s target for 2016.

In March 2016, the country’s cement sales rose by 17% year-on-year to 6.27Mt, supported by growing construction projects and the recovery of the real estate market. Clinker and cement exports grew by 115% year-on-year to 1.35Mt March 2015. Total export volumes for the first quarter of 2016 rose by 2% to 3.5Mt.

The Ministry of Construction forecasts that Vietnam's sales of cement and clinker will rise 4 - 7% on year to between 75 – 77 Mt in 2016 despite economic concerns. The country now has 76 cement production lines with a combined production capacity of 82Mt/yr.

Vietnam: The People’s Committee of the northern coastal province of Quang Ninh have decided to stop the loading and discharge activities and transport of clinker, cement and wood chips on Ha Long Bay due to pollution fears at the tourist site.

Under the decision No. 617/QD-UBND, transportation of bulk cargo, such as clinker, cement and wood chips will be terminated from 1 July 2016. Transportation of these goods will be moved to Hon Net port on Bai Tu Long bay instead. The provincial People Committee has also previously proposed that the government stop upgrades at two cement plants, Thang Long 2 and Ha Long, due to similar concerns.

Ha Long Bay, which spans 1553km² and houses 1969 islands of various sizes, was recognised as a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organizatio (UNESCO) World Heritage Site in 1994 and 2000. It is a major tourist attraction in the country with more than 500 tourist boats in service.

Vietnam: Only four cement producers have built waste heat recovery (WHR) systems by the end of 2015 despite a request by the Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung. Holcim, Chinfon, Ha Tien and Cong Thanh are the only companies to have built the upgrades. The delay has been blamed on the high cost of implementing WHR systems and the market’s poor sales.

According to Nguyen Hoang Cau, secretary general of the Vietnam Cement Association, there are more than 40 cement production lines in the country subject to the requirement. These also include foreign cement producers such as Taiwanese-backed Phuc Son Cement, Hong Kong’s Luks Cement Vietnam Limited, and Japanese-funded Nghi Son Cement. Cement producers have complained to local press about their inability to build WHR systems without financial help.

Vietnam: The Song Lam cement plant has ordered four Loesche mills via Sinoma. The greenfield project is being organised by the Hoang Phat Vissai Group Company.

Two type LM 60.6 Loesche mills have been ordered to grind raw material to a fineness of 12% R90μ, with a capacity of 2 x 520t/hour and a gearbox power of 4600kW. Metal detectors and sealing air fans are also included in the scope of supply. The lead time for the main components of the mill and for the additional units included in the scope of supply is 10 months. The commissioning of the vertical roller mills is planned for the fourth quarter of 2016.

Two type LM 63.3+3 CS Loesche mills have been ordered to grind clinker. These mills are designed with a capacity of 300t/hour Ordinary Portland Cement in order to grind the material to a fineness of 4000 Blaine. The gearboxes of these mills each have a power of 7000 kW.

Vietnam: The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has demanded that rice growers do not use cement as a fertiliser for their fields, state media has reported. The announcement follows local media reports that some farmers in the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap were using cement on their rice fields. In a letter sent to local Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Crop Cultivation Department asked local authorities to prevent cement being used in this way because it has no nutrition value for rice and it make soil unviable for crop cultivation.

Vietnam: Vietnamese farmers in many localities have used cement as fertiliser for their rice fields after a farmer in Lai Vung, Dong Thap said that the move had helped him raise his yield.

Several months ago, when building a new house, Le Van Nuoi from Long Hau noticed that vegetables planted near a place where building workers washed their utensils grew well without any fertiliser. Nuoi thought that the vegetables developed thanks to the mortar and cement stuck on the utensils of building workers.

Nuoi made a test with rice. He put down urea mixed with cement on a small area of rice and discovered that the trees in this area grew better than others in the same field. Nuoi's initiative was transferred to other farmers in the region, who have reached the same conclusion as Nuoi. The farmers have offered instructions on how long the fertiliser should be used and the ratio of cement and urea.

Mai Quoc Hau, Head of the Agriculture and Rural Development Division of Lai Vung, said that the local authorities have known about the initiative of local farmers. The division has sent experts to work with the farmers. He said that he would report the case to the higher authorities for consideration because using cement as fertiliser was 'very strange.' Experts have warned that spraying cement to rice fields will make the land unsuitable for crop cultivation.

Vietnam: Around 74 – 75Mt of cement is expected to be sold in 2016, some 3Mt more than that in 2015. In 2016, no new plants will be put into operation, as the capacity of current plants will meet demands.

According to Le Van Toi, Head of the Building Materials Department under the Ministry of Construction, total output of cement will rise in 2016, as a plant of the Cong Thanh Cement Group increased its capacity by 3.6Mt/yr in late 2015.

In 2015, two cement projects were put into operation, raising the number of production lines to 76 with a total designed capacity of 81.5Mt/yr. Over 72Mt of cement is estimated to have been sold in 2015, up by 3% compared to 2014. Some 16.3Mt was shipped abroad, down by 17.3% year-on-year, but domestic consumption rose by 11.1% to 56.5Mt.

Vietnam: Cong Thanh Group held a ceremony to mark the first batch of cement made by its second production line at its cement plant in Thanh Hoa. The new line has a capacity of 12,500t/day of clinker or 3.6Mt/yr of cement.

The line will help contribute to the province's industrial production growth and contribute US$26.7m to the provincial budget. Vietnam now has 76 cement production lines with a combined output of 81.6Mt/yr. The ministry has estimated that Vietnam's cement and clinker sales in 2015 will reach 71.5 - 72Mt in 2015, fulfilling the year's target, including 55 – 55.5Mt of domestic sales, rising by 9 - 9.5% year-on-year. Clinker exports are likely to fall by 19% to 16.5Mt, meeting 85% of the whole-year target.

Vietnam: Thailand's Siam Cement Group (SCG) is considered partnering with Hanoi-based Viglacera Corporation to expand its operations in Vietnam. The two companies plan to jointly carry out a project to produce medium- and high-end construction materials for domestic sales and export.

Vietnam: Lafarge Vietnam Company has become a unit of Holcim Vietnam Company following the merger between their parent companies.

The merger between Lafarge Vietnam and Holcim Vietnam, which is scheduled for completion in 2015, will help LafargeHolcim optimise its production in the context of oversupply, which has put local cement producers in difficulties, a Holcim Vietnam official has said.

In Vietnam, LafargeHolcim has five cement plants and eight ready-mixed concrete batching plants, with a capacity of 5.2Mt/yr of cement and 1Mm3/yr of concrete. LafargeHolcim will retain its brands of Lafarge and Holcim's products such as Lavilla (Lafarge) and Holcim Power-S (Holcim), according to Nguyen Cong Minh Bao, Head of Holcim Vietnam's Sustainable Development.

Holcim Vietnam presently holds a 26% market share in Vietnam while Lafarge Vietnam takes a 12% share, with their main products being cement, concrete and aggregate.