Cem'In'Eu is starting up Rhône Ciments, its second cement plant in Portes-lès-Valence, Drôme region, France.

"Moving to Portes-lès-Valence allows us to be in the middle of a Lyon-Marseille-Montpellier triangle but also to be connected to the Alpine valleys. We are thus at the heart of the large southeast market," explains Vincent Lefebvre, Cem’In’Eu  president and founder.

The company imports clinker from a 5Mta integrated cement works in eastern Turkey to supply its factory, which has its own access to the port of Sète. The EUR23m Rhône Ciments is expected to produce around 0.25Mta of cement.

While the Portes-lès-Valence plant was originally scheduled to produce the first tonnes of cement in mid-July, the current coronavirus pandemic has affected operations, with the company currently unable to confirm this date of commissioning.

However, as soon as its operational, it forecasts sound sales. "We already have a solid customer base since we started marketing very early with three salespeople who cover the whole of the south-eastern market area," said Mr Lefebvre.

Going forward, Cem'In'Eu plans to open a third factory in the Méron industrial area of Montreuil Bellay (Maine et Loire), covering the western markets, while a fourth plant is to open in the Port of d'Ottmarsheim (Haut-Rhin) to serve the Swiss and southern German markets as well as the northeast of France. Each factory is forecast to add EUR25-30m to the company's annual turnover.