Cementos Portland Valderrivas revises 2012-21 business plan, Spain

Spain's leading cement producer, Cementos Portland Valderrivas, has revised its business plan for 2012-21 after recording a loss of EUR27.7m in the first quarter of 2013.

The company, which is controlled by the contracting group Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas, has announced its intention to dispose of non-core assets and temporarily close plants due to the continuing decrease of the cement demand. The adjustment measures will also include cuts to salaries.

In response to the weak domestic cement climate, Cementos Portland has recently laid off 299 employees from its concrete division and 291 people from the cement plants and related offices in Spain, according to reports in Expansion. The company intends to keep the production only at profitable factories.

Last year, Spanish cement consumption declined by a severe 34 per cent YoY to 13.5Mt. In the first-quarter of this year, demand was down by 29 per cent YoY to 2.5Mt, falling by half a million tonnes in March alone. For full year 2013, consumption is expected to see another double-digit drop of around 20 per cent with further declines forecast for 2014 but at a reduced rate.