Cimpor to refocus Portuguese operations towards exports

With Portuguese cement demand remaining subdued, Cimpor is trying to reorientate cement output from its domestic operations towards export markets, CEO, Ricardo Lima, has said.

Speaking to economic daily Diario Economico, Mr Lima said that the company is trying to transform Portugal to an export platform. The company currently has an installed cement capacity of some 9Mt in the country while domestic demand stands at just 1.5Mta.

Exports volumes have doubled in the past two years with markets including Algeria, Togo, Equatorial Guinea, Mozambique, Gambia, Nigeria, Cameroon and northern Brazil.

The company is undergoing a restructuring phase having being acquired by Camargo Correa last year. However, Mr Lima assured that the firm did not plan to shut down factories in Portugal.