GCC reports record 11M cement sales

Grupo Cementos de Chihuahua SAB de CV (GCC) reports total cement sales volumes for the company reached almost 4Mt for the January-November period, a new record for the company. GCC's total cement sales volumes increased 18.2 per cent in the first 11 months of 2017, after strong cement sales in October and November in the USA.

GCC's Chief Executive Officer, Enrique Escalante, said: "GCC reached record cement sales volumes as a result of strong demand and high level of backlog in our core markets, especially west Texas, Colorado, South Dakota and the [Mexican] state of Chihuahua.

"In addition, builders and contractors enjoyed favourable weather in October and November, which offset the effect of some weather and project-related delays in the third quarter. As a result, we are confident that GCC will significantly exceed our US volume outlook for the year and, as a result, also surpass our EBITDA growth target."

October and November's US cement sales volumes were up 31.2 per cent compared to the same period of 2016. For the first 11 months, US cement volumes increased 28.8 per cent from the comparable 2016 period. GCC's sales were bolstered after the acquisitions in Texas and New Mexico late last year. The USA now generates around 75 per cent of GCC's revenues.

October and November sales volumes in Mexico also grew 10.2 per cent, rebounding from decreases earlier in the year. For the first 11 months, Mexico cement volumes decreased 1.6 per cent.

The company expects consolidated EBITDA growth for 2017 to be greater than 25 per cent, compared to the previous outlook of approximately 20 per cent.