Global Cement News

India: UltraTech Cement’s consolidated net sales rose by 34% year-on-year to US$1.39bn in the fourth quarter of its 2017 financial year from US$1.04bn in the same period in the previous year. Its profit before interest, depreciation and taxation increased by 20% to US$283m from US$236m.

The group benefitted from its acquisition of assets from Jaiprakash Associates in mid-2017. Its cement production capacity grew by 28% to 85Mt/yr from 66.3Mt/yr. However, its capacity utilisation rate fell slightly to 80% from 82%. Its local sales rose by 32% to 17.6Mt from 13.4Mt and exports increased by 15% to 0.82Mt from 0.72Mt. The cement producer also warned that a rise in petcoke and coal prices following a government ban had caused its input costs to inflate during the reporting quarter.

India: South Central Railway has signed a long-term tariff contract with Ramco Cements and Zuari Cements to transport freight at fixed rates. Ramco and Zuari have signed agreements for five and three years respectively. The railway company has previously signed similar deals with UltraTech Cement, India Cements, Orient Cements and Kesoram Industries.

Nigeria: Joe Makoju, the Group Chief Executive Officer of Dangote Cement, has revealed that the cement producer exports 0.21Mt of cement to Ghana, Togo and Niger in the first quarter of 2018. The company’s revenue grew by 16% year-on-year to US$668m from US$575m, according to the Vanguard newspaper. Its profit increased by 29% to US$199m from US$154m. Cement sales rose by 2.8% to 6.2Mt from 6.03Mt.

UK: Spain’s Cemengal is supplying a 0.5Mt/yr Plug & Grind Vertical mill to Tarmac’s Dunbar cement plant. Work started in April 2018 and the project is expected to be completed by July 2019. The unit follows the Plug & Grind product line’s modular format and it includes a FLSmidth OK Mill 37.3. The mill will be used to grind clinker at the cement plant although the subsidiary of CRH may also use the mill to grind slag. The order is Cemengal’s first Plug & Grind Vertical in Europe.

Ireland: CRH says it has reduced its proposed executive salary increases following votes by a significant minority of its shareholders against a remuneration report. The board said that it would take into account the views of 39.7% of its shareholders by providing a lower salary increase to its finance director, although it had offered other benefits to the director instead. It added that the remuneration committee of the company intends to hold a consultation later in 2018.