Gharibwal Cement Ltd in Pakistan has arranged a corporate briefing session on the FY22-23 and 1QFY23-24. To recall, the company posted a profit after tax of PKR1.232bn (US$4.311m) in FY22-23 vis-à-vis PKR1.355bn in FY21-22.

BMR Projects – existing line
Top officials outlined the company's balancing, modernisation and replacement (BMR) programme at its 2.11Mta plant in Jehlum, Punjab. A 10MW solar plant is under negotiation with various vendors and a letter of credit (LC) facility is in hand. Completion is scheduled by the end of FY23-24.

In addition, the existing cooler will be replaced with an advanced cooler from FLSmidth to increase plant capacity and reduce fuel consumption. The letter of credit of the cooler retrofit project has been opened and project completion is scheduled for the 1QFY24-25.

The turbine for the 10MW multifuel power plant has been purchased. A technical study for various boiler options is underway, focussing on using local coal and alternative fuels.

The new 10,000tpd line
In terms of the new 10,000tpd production line, shipments from FLSmidth have arrived and civil work is in progress with a slow and steady approach. The selection of equipment within the company's scope is under way. It is expected that the project will speed up when the mark-up rate is reasonable and the national economic environment settles down.