CMS embarks on expansion, Malaysia

CMS Cement, the sole cement manufacturer on the Malaysian state of Sarawak, is to invest MYR150m on an expansion programme, Malaysia’s National News Agency, Bernama, reported.

"The state's annual need is 1.66Mt and in the last five years, it has registered increases of 10 to 15 per cent," CMS Group Managing Director Datuk Richard Curtis told reporters after officially opening the company's MYR22m Sibu Bulk Cement Terminal.

"We will expand our Kuching and Bintulu plants to be able to produce 2Mt of both Portland and Cemplast Masonry cement by either late next year or early 2014," Mr Curtis continued.

"For our Mambong (Kuching) clinker plant, a new production line will be added to boost raw material production from 650,000t to 800,000t by middle of the year," he said.

He added: "We are still doing the actual costing but when the programme is done, we are optimistic of coping with the increasing demand from the state and particularly from construction activities in its regional development corridor which is the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE)."