Myanmar plant to improve Gresik distribution network

Following PT Semen Gresik’s announcement that it plans to construct a cement plant in Myanmar, a government official has said the new facility will be improve the company's distribution network, particularly in light of a new regional trade agreement.

Earlier this week, local press reported that Gresik is to construct a 2.5Mta cement plant in Myanmar where supply is falling short of demand. This will be Semen Gresik’s first foray abroad.

Sumaryanto Widayatin, a deputy state enterprise minister, has urged state companies to follow in the footsteps of the country’s largest cement maker, especially as the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have agreed to form an integrated community from 2015, with reduced barriers to trade.

Sumaryanto said that Gresik would find it cheaper to export products from Myanmar to the western part of Indonesia rather than transport it from within the archipelago. In an interview with the Jakarta Globe he said: “It would be cheaper to transport cement from Myanmar to Sumatra island than from Java island."