Cement production at Algerian cement producer Chlef Entreprise publique des ciments et dérivés (ECDE) in 2011 is below expectations due to some technical problems among other issues, a company source said yesterday.
Production amounted to 2.11Mt against a target of 2.4Mt, the source said. It attributed this decline to "two big failures of the conveyor belt of raw material, which lasted 12 days, and a movement of distributors that have blocked access to the plant for three weeks."
However, the source emphasised that: "tremendous efforts have been made by management and workers of the cement plant to bridge this gap and ensure a normal supply of local and national markets." Cement marketed by ECDE makes up 20 per cent of national production, the source said.
The company is planning a new line at the site which will double capacity to 4Mt by 2015. The plan has already been submitted to the relevant authorities for approval.
