The Cement and Concrete Association of Malaysia (C&CA) has celebrated its 50th anniversary with an event officiated by International Trade and Industry Minister, Mustapa Mohamed.

During the event, the Minister highlighted that the Malaysian cement industry is expected to see reasonable growth in the next two to three years with support from the major government infrastructure development projects. "Although demand for high-end residential units had softened, the government is continuously pushing to spur construction in the form of affordable housing, the Refinery and Petrochemical Integrated Development and Mass Rapid Transit projects, among others," he told reporters.

Speaking on behalf of the Malaysian cement industry, the C&CA called for more government programmes to expand the country's concrete road network. C&CA chairwoman, Yeoh Soo Keng, said: "They are competitive and suitable for rural and flood-prone areas." 

Meanwhile, outgoing Lafarge Malaysia president and CEO, Bradley Mulroney, also noted that the promotion of concrete roads is in line with efforts to support "homegrown industries such as ours."

In terms of current challenges facing the domestic cement sector, the C&CA noted that the weakening Malaysian ringgit has hit the industry hard, with costs rising up to 20 per cent. “The big components are coal and gypsum, which are imported. So this is a big impact on our industry," Yeoh Soo Keng stated.

Malaysia is also still a net importer of clinker. Earlier during his speech, Minister Mohamed said more integrated cement plants should be set up in Malaysia to increase clinker production and reduce the need for such imports. From January-August, Malaysia imported MYR348.6m of clinker, an article in the Sun Daily (Malaysia) highlighted. However, over the same timeframe, the report stated that MYR28.1m of cement was exported to Australia (79.5 per cent), Sri Lanka (9.5 per cent), Indonesia (7.3 per cent) and India (3.3 per cent).

The event to mark the C&CA's milestone year also coincided with the launch of its coffee table book entitled: "Raising a Nation, Building an Industry".