PPC - October 2018

PPC is undertaking an entrenchment process at its head office in Johannesburg, South Africa. According to the company, the restructuring is designed to help meet “operational requirements”, but no further details have been forthcoming about what is involved, the reasons behind the process and how many people would be affected.

The announcement comes on the back of the company reporting a 4-5 per cent YoY decline in cement volumes in the five months to August 2018. This is being blamed on the weak South African economy, the VAT increase on consumer spending and a fall in large infrastructure projects.

Despite a number of construction companies in the country experiencing severe financial difficulties, PPC said that cement prices continued to recover across the region with South Africa reporting a two per cent uptick in prices, while the inland and Gauteng areas have seen increases of 3-4 per cent.