Cemex intends to give its Spanish operations a boost through the construction of a cement export terminal in Italy. The facility will also serve as an export base from other European plants, particularly to north Africa.

Cemex plans to raise its share of exports from Spain from 35 to 60 per cent to counteract the slowdown in the domestic market.

The ongoing downturn in the Spanish market, where demand is around 11Mt, has caused a considerable overcapacity as cement producers currently have an installed capacity of over 50Mta. Increasing the share of exports has enabled domestic cement companies to limit the drop in utilisation rates although several have closed cement plants.