Lucky Cement of Pakistan will dispatch first consignment to India during the next week, an official at the company told Daily Times.

He said the first consignment would carry from 5,000t to 10,000t of cement. Lucky Cement received the certification for its cement from Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) last week, which cleared its way to export the building material to the neighbouring country, which is facing a huge shortage. BIS has the authority to certify quality of cement to be sold in India, whether domestically manufactured or imported.

The company expects to sell from 1Mt-1.5Mt cement to the buyers in India within one year.

India is facing an acute shortage of cement due to surge in construction activities and huge spending on infrastructure development by the Indian government.

The landed cost of cement imported from Pakistan is around 170 Indian Rupees per 50kg bag as against 240 Indian Rupees charged by the domestic producers. Even if another 30 Indian Rupees is added as transportation cost, Pakistani cement will be available for 200 Indian Rupees in Indian cities.