Cement News tagged under: Spain

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Spanish regulator expands cartel probe

10 June 2015, Published under Cement News

Spanish competition watchdog, CNMC, has expanded its probe into concrete and cement producers on alleged cartel agreements. The regulator carried out inspections at the headquarters of concrete and cement makers on 27 and 28 May as part of the probe on 14 sector players, the CNMC said in a statement. The regulator said it has 18 months to decide whether it will impose a fine on the companies and reminded that the investigation on potential cartel agreements is among its priorities, econo...

Cementos Portland names non-executive president, Spain

21 May 2015, Published under Cement News

Spanish cement maker Cementos Portland has appointed Alicia Alcocer Koplowitz as a non-executive president, the company said in a filing with stock market regulator CNMV. Alicia Alcocer Koplowitz is the daughter of Esther Koplowitz, the owner of Cementos Portland, and has been a vice president of the board of directors of the group so far. Her appointment was unanimously approved by the board of directors of Cementos Portland during its meeting on Monday. Alicia Alcocer Koplowitz will repl...

Spain: April cement demand up 13% YoY

20 May 2015, Published under Cement News

Cement consumption in Spain has expanded by 13.3 per cent to 961,712t in April 2015 when compared with April 2014, according to cement association, Oficemen. For the first four months, domestic demand increased by 9.7 per cent YoY to 3,514,175t “Although the data are starting to look much better, we know a lot of work remains to be done, because we do not expect to achieve a full recovery before the end of the next decade,” said Aniceto Zaragoza, Oficemen CEO.

Molins sees net 1Q15 profit up 132%

14 May 2015, Published under Cement News

Spanish cement producer Cementos Molins reported a net profit of EUR15.1m in 1Q15, up 132 per cent YoY from EUR6.5m in 1Q14. Although domestic sales improved by 7.1 per cent, the company said the advance was “insufficient”. EBITDA reached EUR2.1m, but net profit remained in the red. Its Mexican subsidiary Corporación Moctezuma posted a 37.3 per cent rise in sales while Argentina’s Cementos Avellaneda saw revenues increase by 51.1 per cent. In Uruguay, Cementos Artigos saw a 34.3 per cent i...

Spain: 1Q15 cement demand up 8.5% YoY

20 April 2015, Published under Cement News

Spanish cement consumption increased 8.5 per cent YoY to 2,553,962t in the first quarter of 2015. In March cement demand expanded by 12.3 per cent to 983,210t, according to cement association Oficemen. "Although these figures are well received and could indicate a change in trend, they are also insufficient. The growth in absolute numbers is small and keeps us on the threshold of lowest historical consumption, " Oficemen CEO, Aniceto Zaragoza, said. "Additionally, we are close to the reg...

Spain: Cementos Portland reports EUR29.5m loss

16 April 2015, Published under Cement News

FCC-owned Cementos Portland closed the first quarter of 2015 with a EUR29.5m loss, representing a 21.2 per cent higher figure when compared with 1Q14. The cement company attributes the fall to lower CO2 sales and new accounting rules relating to annual maintenance costs. Taking into account these effects, results improve by EUR7m. Revenues increased 9.4 per cent to EUR121.8m as the company maintained stable cement sales of 1.6Mt. However, concrete deliveries were down 43 per cent to 66M...

Spanish watchdog includes Lafarge and Holcim in cartel proceedings

15 April 2015, Published under Cement News

Spanish competition regulator CNMC has included Lafarge and Holcim in the proceedings for alleged cartel agreements brought up against a number of sector players at the end of 2014. Additionally, the CNMC has extended the proceedings to Materiales y Hormigones and Hormibusa. The move was based on information gathered during several inspections carried out in September for alleged exchange of information, price fixing and market division practices in the cement and concrete sector. The CN...

Spain: February consumption up 8%

19 March 2015, Published under Cement News

Spain’s demand for cement increased 8.3 per cent in February to 810,104t, when compared with February 2014, according to Oficemen, the country’s cement association. For the first two months of 2015, consumption advanced 6.6 per cent YoY to 1.6Mt. However, Oficemen CEO, Aniceto Zaragoza, highlights that more needs to be done to consolidate growth. "In continuing this trend, it will take more than a decade to just reach half of cement consumption recorded in 2007. We believe it is necess...

Spain: Portland Valderrivas reduces full-year loss

27 February 2015, Published under Cement News

Cementos Portland Valderrivas reported a EUR52.3m loss in 2014, around 27.3 per cent less than the previous year. The company attributed the improved result to the recovery of the Spanish economy which was reflected in a rise in public tenders, boosting in turn cement consumption. Cementos Portland Valderrivas reported a net operating profit of EUR35.9m, against a net operating loss of EUR24.2m the previous year. Revenues increased 0.4 per cent to EUR542.9m as the company divested from n...

Spain’s cement demand expands 5.2% in January

17 February 2015, Published under Cement News

Spain’s cement consumption rose by 5.2 per cent YoY to 769,838t in January 2015, according to Oficemen, the domestic cement association. The latest figures show an acceleration in growth, which at the end of 2014 stood at 0.4 per cent and noted the first annual increase since 2007. Spanish cement consumption has now registered five consecutive months of YoY increases since September 2014. Industry commentators believe the country has finally turned a corner as improved economic conditions...