Siam Cement Group to begin Myanmar plant construction in 2H13

Siam Cement Group of Thailand plans to kick start construction of a greenfield cement plant in neighbouring Myanmar in the second half of this year, having received regulatory approval.

The 1.7Mta cement factory has been given the go-ahead by the Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC), allowing the Thai conglomerate to begin construction as soon as the investment value is finalised by SCG's board, according to president and chief executive KanTrakulhoon. The investment value is expected to be US$400m and operations are expected to begin in 2015.

The factory will be situated in Mawlamyine, Myanmar's fourth-largest city and is 300km southeast of Yangon and 130km from Mae Sot on the Thai side of the border. SCG currently exports 1.8Mt to Mynamar but the first phase of the new plant's expansion is likely to be less than this amount.

SCG is also expanding its Southeast Asian footprint with the construction of a greenfield plant in West Java, Indonesia. A second line is also being constructed at the company's 0.96Mta plant in Cambodia which will lift capacity by about 0.9Mt. The new line is expected to come on-stream by 2015.