Paraguay: The Italian cement manufacturer Colacem has confirmed that it will start construction of a US$200m integrated 2Mt/yr cement plant in the district of San Alfredo, Concepción, Paraguay in early 2020. Representatives from Colacem, along with the Italian Ambassador to Paraguay and Paraguayan Minister for Industry and Commerce made the announcement at a meeting with Paraguay’s President Mario Abdo Benítez.

Paraguayan Minister for Industry and Commerce Liz Cramer said that the projected investment will benefit the entire northern area of the eastern region in terms of new jobs, incorporation of technology and environmental sustainability.

Construction will take three years and the plant will create 700 jobs during construction. There will be around 500 permanent positions, with a further 2000 indirect new jobs arising from the plant.

Italian ambassador to Paraguay, Gabriel Annis, said, "I thank the Government of Paraguay for its support and I confirm the support of my Government for this investment, which for us is fundamental and strategic.” He added that the investment includes technology transfer, social projects and care of the environment and said that he was confident that they will bring development for a Paraguayan region that needs economic injection.

Tajikistan: Tajikistan exported nearly 0.62Mt of cement in the first five months of 2019, with average monthly cement of around 0.124Mt. This represents a significant increase compared to the recent past. In 2015 monthly exports typically averaged 42,000t.

Between 1 January and 31 May 2019, Tajikistan exported 0.346Mt of cement to Uzbekistan, 0.247Mt to Afghanistan and 27,000t to Kyrgyzstan, according to the Ministry of Industry and New Technologies. Over the same five-month period, Tajikistan made more than 0.1Mt more cement than in the same period of 2018.

Tajikistan now has 18 cement plants with a total production capacity of about 5Mt/yr, with Huaxin Gayur Cement, Chzhungtsai Mohir Cement and Huaxin Gayur Sughd Cement accounting for more than 85% of the overall volume made in the first five months of 2019.

The country exported

Singapore: The Singapore Exchange has blocked the International Cement Group’s (ICG) proposed acquisition of Schwenk Namibia. It said that the transaction did not meet the requirements of a very substantial acquisition (VSA) because the target business was not profitable and because the buyer did not have sufficient cash resources to fund the purchase.

In order to approve the acquisition in the future the exchange requires: that ICG commissions implement anti-money laundering measures on any potential funds for the transaction; that it put into place ‘adequate’ internal controls and risk management systems for any of its operations in Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Namibia and any other developing country; and that the audit committee uses external auditors.

ICG announced in March 2019 that it had arranged to buy a 100% stake in Schwenk Namibia for US$104m. Schwenk Namibia owns a 69.8% share of Ohorongo Cement.

France: Cem’In’Eu has ordered a 0.25Mt/yr grinding unit from Fives for its Portes les Valence plant in Drôme. The plant has an investment of Euro24m and it is scheduled to open in the second half of 2020. The scope of supply includes raw materials loading, clinker, limestone and gypsum hoppers, a 34t/hrt CEM II A/L FCB B-mill (ball mill) operating in a closed circuit with a FCB TSV dynamic classifier. The Portes les Valence project follows the opening of Cem’In’Eu’s grinding plant at Aliénor in Tonneins in 2018.

Azerbaijan: Norm Cement plans to increase its clinker production in order to expand its export markets. It intends to export 1Mt in 2019, according to the Trend News Agency. In 2018 it exported 10,000t to Georgia. In 2019 it hopes to send 0.1Mt to Kazakhstan.

Vietnam: Xuan Khiem Group is seeking government approval to build a US$214m cement plant in Hoa Binh province. The Xuan Son plant will have a production capacity of 2.3Mt/yr and it is scheduled to be completed in 2020, according to the Viet Nam News newspaper. The People’s Committee of Hoa Binh province and Xuan Khiem Group signed a memorandum of understanding to build the plant in late 2018.

Vietnam: Vicem Hoang Mai plans to build a 3Mt/yr cement plant in Nghe An province with an investment of US$286m. The unit will be built in the province’s Hoang Mai 2 Industrial Zone, according to the Vietnam Economic News newspaper. The project was approved in principle by the Provincial People's Committee in May 2019. It is part of the country’s cement industry development plan in 2030.

Ethiopia: A new bag-packing unit at Dangote Cement Ethiopia’s Mugher plant in Oromia is unable to start operation due to a lack of raw materials. The US$20m polypropylene bag plant was completed in April 2018 but it is restricted by government controls on foreign currency that are limiting its import of input materials, according to the Reporter newspaper. The unit can produce up to 120 million bags per year.

The cement producer has also suspended plans to build a second 2.5Mt/yr production line at the plant. An agreement was signed with China’s Sinoma International for the project but it has since been abandoned due to a shortage of foreign currency, a lack of electrical power and general security issues. Deep Kamara, the country manager of Dangote Cement Ethiopia, was killed in an gun attack in mid-2018. No one has been arrested in relation to the murder.

Ivory Coast: LafargeHolcim Ivory Coast has launched online sales of its products on the Jumia e-commerce platform. The online store is aimed at individual and small business customers, according to the Agence Ivoirienne de Presse. The project is starting in a pilot phase in Abidjan and Bingerville. Deliveries of orders made online are coordinated with the company’s Binastore network around the country.

India: Dalmia Cement and South Eastern Railways have inaugurated a freight train. The ceremony marked the start of an agreement whereby the cement producer will use its own locomotives with branded rakes of goods wagons, according to the Pioneer newspaper. The deal covers five such freight trains.Image