Displaying items by tag: costs

India: Indian Railways has shared plans to establish dedicated rail corridors to supply raw materials to the cement sector. The Times of India newspaper has reported that the corridors will connect plants to sources of clinker, fly ash and limestone. Indian Railways says that the plans encompass ‘different parts of the country,’ and will be implemented over the 10-year period up to the end of the 2033 financial year. In addition to offering ‘better service’ and ‘attractive’ prices, the rail company will also carry out capital expenditure investments in order to maximise the volume of materials travelling on its cement corridors.

India: The state government of Himachal Pradesh has announced the forthcoming reopening of Adani Group's Darlaghat and Gagal cement plants. Reuters has reported that truck drivers' unions agreed to a reduced freight rate offered by Adani Group. The producer shut the plants on 15 December 2022, claiming that it faced prohibitively high operating costs, including high freight charges.

Truck drivers will now receive rates of US$0.12/t/km for despatches in small delivery trucks and US$0.11/t/km for dispatches in articulated trucks. Drivers operating at the Darlaghat cement plant previously earned fees of US$0.13/t/km, while those operating at the Gagal cement plant had earned fees of US$0.14/t/km. Adani Group had reportedly sort to lower rates to US$0.07/t/km. Unions have criticised the newly negotiated rates, pointing out the UltraTech Cement recently raised the wages of drivers at its Baga cement plant in the state to US$0.13/t/km.

India: Shree Cement recorded a 20% year-on-year rise in its consolidated sales to US$1.55bn in the first nine months of the 2023 financial year, from US$1.29bn in the first nine months of the 2022 financial year. The group's total expenditure rose by 36% to US$1.29bn from US$952m. Thus, Shree Cement recorded a 56% drop in net profit, to US$90.1m from US$203m.

US: Holcim has signed an agreement with Duro-Last to acquire the roofing systems producer for US$1.29bn. Reuters has reported that the acquisition will be Holcim's largest for all of 2022 and 2023 so far. Once the parties complete the transaction, Duro-Last's business will join Holcim's products and systems division. Holcim expects the deal to yield synergies of US$60m/yr, primarily through a reduction in the cost of materials.

Holcim expects its products and systems division to contribute a majority of its profit in North America once increased investment under the US government's Inflation Reduction Act begins to take effect. In 2022, the division accounted for 40% of regional profit. The group is committed to a global target of 30% of sales being attributable to the products and systems division by 2025, compared to 19% of sales in 2022.

India: JK Cement's consolidated sales were US$839m during the first nine months of the 2023 financial year, up by 23% year-on-year from US$682m during the corresponding period of the 2022 financial year. The producer's costs grew across all areas of expenditure, resulting in a net profit for the period of US$37.4m, down by 36% year-on-year.

JK Cement received approval for the issuance of up to US$12.1m in redeemable non-convertible debentures (NCDs) on private placement basis on 6 February 2023.

India: The state government of Himachal Pradesh says that it will take 'legal action' against Adani Group should it fail to reopen its Darlaghat and Gagal cement plants. The Times of India newspaper has reported that measures may include cancellation of the cement producer's relevant land leases. Out-of-work truck drivers agreed to cancel a state-wide road blockade in protest against the closures after the government promised a 'resolution' on 4 February 2022. It now plans to hold talks with Adani Group, in which it will relay truck drivers' offer of an 11% reduction in per-kilometre freight rates to US$0.12/t from US$0.14/t.

Himachal Pradesh industries minister Harshwardhan Chauhan said that the state government is empowered to take drastic measures in defence of Himachali people's interests.

Geological Survey of India (GSI) officials are reportedly investigating alleged illegal mining at the sites of the Darlaghat and Gagal cement plants.

India: Birla Corporation recorded nine-month consolidated sales of US$751m so far in the 2023 financial year, up by 20% year-on-year from US$628m in the first nine months of the 2022 financial year. The company made a net loss of US$5.37m however, compared to a net profit of US$34.7m during the first nine months of the 2022 financial year.

Birla Corporation did not publish a figure for fuel and electricity costs, however its raw materials costs rose by 25% year-on-year to US$111m, while its 'other expenses' more than doubled to US$565m.

Tunisia: Les Ciments de Bizerte recorded a full-year consolidated turnover of US$40.1m in 2022, corresponding to a drop of 5.4% year-on-year from 2021 levels. The producer's clinker production fell by 24% year-on-year to 538,000t. African Manager News has reported that the company faced a forced stoppage during the year due to a disruption to its raw materials supply. Meanwhile, its costs increased amid rises in the price of petcoke, electricity, diesel and packaging materials.

Europe: The European cement association, Cembureau, has 'welcomed the objectives' of the European Commission's new Green Deal industrial plan. The Green Deal attempts to create a predictable and simplified regulatory environment in which to scale up the production and implementation of net-zero CO₂ technologies.

Cembureau also issued its advise for a successful Green Deal implementation. The association said that the framework must match the US Inflation Reduction Act in its provision of tax rebates and other incentives. It said that the plan must establish stable renewable energy prices and rapid permit procedures, with a focus on deployment of renewables at industrial sites. It also called for funding under the plan to finance the development of infrastructure for CO₂ transport and storage.

Pakistan: Lucky Cement recorded sales of US$876m in the first half of its 2023 financial year, up by 42% year-on-year from US$616m in the first half of the 2022 financial year. It sold 3.57Mt of cement and clinker, down by 24% year-on-year from 4.7Mt. The producer's costs rose by 50% to US$585m from US$391m. It recorded a profit of US$73.1m, up by 6.8% from US$68.4m.

During the half-year period, total national cement sales dropped by 17% year-on-year to 20Mt, while Pakistan's cement exports fell by 49% to 1.7Mt. The aftermath of flooding, high interest rates, inflation and cost of goods and cuts to government spending all impacted the domestic cement market, while 'global recessionary trends' cut into exports, according to Lucky Cement.

Lucky Cement holds a 15% share in the Pakistan market and a 34% share in the export market.