New Mexican cement player to enter the market

Privately-held Mexican conglomerate Elementia, part-owned by billionaire Carlos Slim plans to list shares on the local exchange and is launching a cement company on the Mexican market, Reuters reports.

Elementia plans an initial public offering in the medium term, and it is opening a cement company that aims to supply three per cent of the local market by next year, CEO Eduardo Musalem said on Tuesday.

Elementia is backing the new cement maker that aims to begin operating a plant in December with a capacity of 1Mta, Musalem said. Under the name, Cementos Fortaleza, the company will build a US$300m plant in Hidalgo state and will distribute cement in about one-third of Mexico's states, mostly in the central part of the country, Musalem said.

"It's been 70 years since the last time a cement maker launched in the (Mexican) market," Musalem said during a press conference.

By 2014, the company plans to start selling ready mix and aggregates. Elementia has quarries good for a "100-year supply," according to Antonio Taracena, chief executive of Fortaleza.