Global Cement News

China: Gansu Shangfeng Cement has announced plans for the establishment of a new building materials digital intelligence research company. Local press has reported that the company will function as a joint venture of a Gansu Shangfeng Cement subsidiary and another company. Gansu Shangfeng Cement says that the new venture will have registered capital of US$70.3m.

Bangladesh: Crown Cement has estimated the total cost of cement capacity currently unused in Bangladesh at US$1.46bn. The figure is even higher when maintenance costs are included, according to Crown Cement's chief advisor Masud Khan. Over the past 15 years, national cement capacity has nearly quadrupled to 83.3Mt/yr from 22.4Mt/yr, while demand has merely doubled to 46.7Mt/yr from 22.8Mt/yr. Khan estimated the cost per 1Mt/yr of new Bangladeshi cement capacity over the period at US$40m.

Khan said that producers continue to anticipate an acceleration in local cement consumption growth in the medium-term future. Reflecting on the situation up to the end of 2022, he said "They thought if they were not prepared for the growing demand, they would lose their market share. That was why they continued expansion, bearing the burden of excess capacity." Khan forecast a further decline in the industry's capacity utilisation if gross domestic product undergoes a forecast drop during the 2023 financial year, impacting on producers' results for the year.

US: A coal pile collapse at Cemex USA's Knoxville, Tennessee, cement plant killed one worker at the plant earlier in November 2022. Local press has reported that Thomas Mitchell, aged 21, died at the scene.

Cemex says that it is cooperating with an on-going investigation into the disaster.

Brazil: Votorantim Cimentos’ net revenue grew by 18% year-on-year to US$3.60bn in the first nine months of 2022 from US$3.04bn in the same period in 2021. Its cement sales volumes rose slightly to 27.8Mt. However, its adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 16% to US$659m from US$780m.

Domestically the group said that its revenue grew because price rises counteracted falling sales volumes of cement. Outside of Brazil it reported growing revenue, apart from in its Latin American business. Here it blamed the fall on a new competitor entering the Uruguayan market and market issues in Bolivia. Earnings were noted to have decreased in every region mainly due to mounting fuel, raw material and energy costs.

Votorantim launched a new logo in October 2022 and completed its acquisition of Heidelberg Materials' Southern Spanish businesses in November 2022. The purchase included an integrated cement plant located in Málaga, three aggregates quarries and 11 ready-mix concrete plants in the Andalusia region.

India: Ramco Cements has approved plants to build a second production line at its Haridaspur grinding plant in Jajpur District, Odisha with a capacity of 0.9Mt/yr. Around US$16m has been earmarked for the project. Once commissioned the plant’s total capacity will be 1.8Mt/yr.

The cement producer’s revenue grew by 31% year-on-year to US$442m in the first half of its financial year to 30 September 2022. However, its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 35% to US$61.9m. It blamed the loss in earnings on falling cement prices and mounting fuel costs. The company currently has cement and clinker production capacities of 21Mt/yr and 14Mt/yr respectively. It also reported that a 6MW waste heat recovery unit at its Kurnool plant in Andhra Pradesh will be commissioned in November 2022. An additional 6MW at the same plant is scheduled to start operation in March 2023.