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Four bidders shortlisted for purchase of Halla Cement 19 September 2017
South Korea: Four companies have been shortlisted to buy a full stake in Halla Cement. Asia Cement, Sungshin Cement, Aju Corporation and LK Investment Partners are all contenders for the sale, according to sources quoted by the Maeil Business Newspaper. Six investors submitted preliminary bids for the cement producer and Halla Cement’s largest shareholder Baring Private Equity Asia and its sales advisor Citigroup Global Market Securities Korea chose the final selection.
The shortlisted companies will have up to six weeks to conduct due diligence procedures before submitting final bids in early November 2017. The seller intends to pick a final bidder by mid-November 2017.
Baring Private Equity Asia and Glenwood Private Equity bought Lafarge Halla Cement from LafargeHolcim in mid-2016 for Euro427m.
LafargeHolcim deal boosts freight rates for Zambia Railways 19 September 2017
Zambia: A contract with LafageHolcim has boosted Zambia Railways freight rate by 28% year-on-year to 318,000t in the first half of 2017 from 247,000t in the same period of 2016. The railway company attributed the increase to a new contract with LafargeHolcim, according to the Zambia Daily Mail newspaper. It also cited rising coal imports from Zimbabwe for ‘booming’ cement production in Zambia, as well as more business in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Local council approves extension to St Marys Cement’s Charlevoix plant construction period 19 September 2017
US: The Charlevoix Township Board of Trustees has approved a request from St Marys Cement to extend a certificate allowing St Marys Cement more time to complete expansion work at its Charlevoix plant in Michigan. Votorantim Cimentos North America asked the local government body to extend its industrial facilities exemption certificate abatement by one year, as construction at the site is not expected to be completed until the end of 2018, according to the Charlevoix Courier newspaper. The cement producer plans to have the new systems at the plant running by mid-May 2018.
Upgrade work at the plant will increase its production capacity from 1.3Mt/yr to nearly 2Mt/yr. The cost has been budgeted at US$130m.
ANCAP in row over spare cement kiln 19 September 2017
Uruguay: The Administración Nacional de Combustibles, Alcoholes y Portland (ANCAP) is reportedly unsure what to do with a spare kiln it owns. The state-owned oil and cement producer purchased the US$80m kiln for its Paysandú cement plant, according to the Uypress news agency. At present the parts and components are stored at the site.
ANCAP’s union would like the kiln to be installed to secure cement supply at the plant. However, the company’s cement division has built up a debt of US$207m over the past 15 years and it is expected to make a loss of US$15m in 2017. The cement producer plans to cut 60 jobs and make savings of US$20m by 2019.
Industria Nacional de Cemento installs new cement mill 19 September 2017
Paraguay: Industria Nacional del Cemento (INC) has installed a new cement mill at its Villeta plant. Once fully operational the new mill will produce up to 80t/hr of a new product, CPC-40, according to the Hoy website. The cement producer aims to increase production by 45% by the end of 2017.