Ecebol to start cement sales in August

Bolivian state-owned producer Empresa Pública Productiva de Cementos de Bolivia (Ecebol) will start selling cement from its new Oruro works in August.

According to the manager of the Development Service of Public Productive Enterprises (SEDEM), Patricia Ballivián, the current cost of the cement is the most expensive in the region and the company will serve to increase competition in the domestic market and set “a fair price” for the population and construction companies.

“We already have an ex-works price, in fact our price is BOB37 (US$5.35)/50kg bag. Of course, there are transportation charges. We are generating within SEDEM a logistics agency,” she said.

At present a bag of 50kg of cement from Viacha is sold in La Paz for BOB55. For more than 50 bags the price goes down to BOB54, said the seller of a SOBOCE distribution post in the Achachicala area. In Santa Cruz,  where the market is currently disputed by Fancesa, Itacamba, Warnes and Coboce, the price varies between BOB45-50.