Uzbekistan: The state assets management agency UzAssets has agreed to sell the Uzbek government’s 87% stake in Qizilqumcement for US$174m, according to the UzDaily newspaper. Under the terms of the deal, United Cement Group will maintain the plant’s personnel and the level of their pay, implement the approved modernisation programme and continue to provide training, support social projects in Navoi region and organise events in the community.
Pakistan’s six-month cement shipments fall in 2022 financial year
Pakistan: All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA) members dispatched 27.5Mt of cement in the first half of the 2022 financial year, down by 4.1% year-on-year from 28.6Mt in the first half of the 2021 financial year. The News International newspaper has reported that exports fell by 32%during the period to 3.39Mt from 5.02Mt.
Afghan and Russian investors to establish cement company in Afghanistan
Afghanistan: The acting deputy prime minister of the interim government in Afghanistan hosted talks between investors from Afghanistan and Russia on 4 January 2021. Anadolu News Agency has reported that the investors plan to collaborate on the establishment of a new cement company.
Acting deputy culture and information minister Zabiullah Mujahid tweeted that the meeting covered the establishment of cement plants‘in detail’. He added that the government will strive to establish investor-friendly laws.
Qassim Cement planning new mill and solar unit at Buraydah plant
Saudi Arabia: Qassim Cement has entered into a preliminary agreement with China-based Chengdu Design & Research Institute of Building Materials Industry (CDI) for the engineering, supply and construction of a cement mill at its integrated Buraydah plant. The new mill will have a production capacity of 300t/hr. The project is budgeted at around US$40m and it has an implementation period of 15 months. More binding detailed contracts are expected to be signed by mid-January 2022.
The cement company also plans to appoint a consultant to define the scope of work and identify contractors to build a 30MW solar unit near the Buraydah plant. It said that the company would not incur any capital or operational expenditure as the payment would be based on actual consumption. The solar unit project is part of the country’s Saudi Vision 2030 strategic framework to reduce dependence on oil.
