Mozambique plans supervisory system to ensure steady supplies

The government of Mozambique plans to implement a supervisory system to ensure the time and sufficient supply of cement into the market.

Henrique Banze, spokesperson for the Council of Ministers and deputy Foreign Affairs, said on Tuesday that the government was concerned about ensuring steady supplies of cement as large infrastructure projects are swallowing up much of cement output, leaving little for the retail market. This in turn has kept pushing up prices and imports.

Currently there are four plants operating in the country and last year cement output totalled 1.1Mt compared to demand of 1.53Mt.

The supervisory system would help the government adapt supply to demand and encourage producers to increase output to meet market requirements, the Macauhub reported.

Domestic demand is expected to rise by around 10 per cent annually and with local production unable to meet growing consumption, the government has been actively encouraging the arrival of new cement plants. Eleven new facilities are understood to be at varying stages of construction and if realized, will boost national capacity to 7.5Mta by 2015. If all planned projects come online, overcapacity could lead to a sharp fall in prices.