The Cuban cement industry will begin modernising cement plants this year to increase the country's production.

According to Pavel Cansino Ávila, deputy director of Grupo Empresarial de Cemento (GECEM), a new factory in Santiago de Cuba must be set up during the current year, which will replace the obsolete "José Mercerón", built in 1955. The plant will be located in the southern part of Abel Santamaría neigbourhood, in the eastern city, between two deposits of raw materials. The official explained that the plant, expected to be completed in three years, will have a 1Mta clinker capacity and 1.2 Mta of cement capacity.

Mr Ávila added that in 2018 they will also upgrade the Siguaney works in Sancti Spíritus and the 26th of July plant in Nuevitas, with the aim of reaching full capacity of grey cement, as well as white cement at Sancti Spíritus.

He specified that the aspiration is to modernise the six cement plants distributed throughout the country, including the Mariel plant, which celebrates its centenary this year.

The Cuban government has allocated more than US$700m for the cement plant improvement programme to double current output by 2025 and triple it five years later, Mr Ávila said.

In 2017 although the government's order and the volumes destined to the retail trade were fulfilled, it was not possible to produce the 1,573,200t of cement expected in the plan, which closed at 92 per cent compliance, according to a report by the Construction Materials Business Group.

The failures were due to issues such as the financing of maintenance, while there were also obstacles in train and maritime transportation, the document states. In addition the lack of raw materials also affected bagging, although this did not impact the delivery of bulk cement to the domestic network of stores, said the official.