Southern Province Cement (SPC) and Chinese engineering company Sinoma have signed a SAR707m (US$188m) contract for the installation of a third new line at SPC’s plant in Tuhama.

In a filing to the Saudi bourse, the cement producer said the contract will be executed over 24 months and once completed, the new line will have a capacity of 5000tpd. SPC said it will use its own funds to finance the project.

In early March, the company announced that its second production line at Tuhama started commercial production, bringing SPC’s total capacity to 23,000tpd.