Cementos Portland Valderrivas reduces 1H losses, Spain

Spain-based Cementos Portland Valderrivas (CPV) reduced losses by 98.9 per cent in 1H13, to EUR0.6m, compared with losses of EUR48.6m in the first half of the year before. CPV's asset swap with CRH earlier this year also provided capital gains of EUR104.8m.

According to José Luis Sáenz de Miera, Chairman and CEO of Cementos Portland Valderrivas, results for the first half reflect "efforts last year to reduce costs in Spain, where demand continues to shrink, and to improve efficiency in operations in the US, where consumption of construction materials is on the rise".

Cement consumption in Spain declined by 24.2 per cent in 1H13, to 5.5Mt, a performance which was reflected in Cementos Portland Valderrivas' results. Revenues slipped by 20 per cent, to EUR270m compared with EUR338m in the same period of 2012. This decline was exacerbated by lower sales of CO2 trading rights in the first half of the year. A larger contribution by the company's US subsidiary partially offset the decline in revenues and sales of CO2 rights.

The company is currently negotiating to divest around EUR15m from several non-strategic assets.