The three companies that make up Chile’s cement industry - Bío Bío, Melón and Polpaico - are planning to invest a total of US$134m in 2006 given the record sales expected by the industry this year, newspaper Estrategia reported. Cementos Bío Bío, controlled by Chile’s Briones group, has planned the largest investment of US$100m for installing new silos at its plant in CuricóRegion VI), opening a new coal mill in Antofagasta and finding alternative energy sources to gas.
In the meantime, Cemento Melón, controlled by France’s Lafarge group, plans to invest US$20m in building a second cement milling plant at Region X town Trapen de Panitao, to supply the southern part of the country with an extra 300,000tpa of cement.
Cemento Polpaico, controlled by Swiss cement holding Holcim, will invest US$14m in improving its concrete distribution network and expects to wrap up a US$7m alternative fuel plant by 2006.
