Holcim Philippines to invest US$54m in the next 2 years

Holcim Philippines Inc plans to invest US$54m over the next two years to increase its capacity to 12Mta to support the government’s flagship infrastructure projects.

The company will invest US$54m in the next two years to add 2Mt to its current cement capacity by the first half of 2019, particularly in La Union and Davao," Holcim Philippines President and Chief Executive Officer, Sapna Sood, said in a statement. "Our investments assure that Holcim Philippines will continue to provide a reliable supply of an essential building material as cement demand increases in the country as these projects come on-stream," she added.

The Duterte government intends to spend PHP860.7bn (US$17bn) on public infrastructure projects this year as part of a PHP8.4trn spending plan until 2022.

Holcim Philippines reported a 46 per cent YoY drop in net income to PHP1.16bn in 2Q17 as demand for cement eased. Revenues fell by 21 per cent to PHP8.5bn during the April-June period when compared with a year earlier.

The company’s first-half earnings declined 43 per cent YoY to PHP2.1bn, while revenues softened by 17 per cent to PHP17.4bn.

"Lower income was mainly due to lower sales as well as higher production input costs. The company has implemented various company-wide initiatives to further improve operational efficiency," the company said.