Cement News tagged: Corporate
Martin Marietta's net profit trebles
Martin Marietta Materials, the fourth-largest US aggregates producer, has announced a first-half turnover 161.9 per cent ahead at US$1097.8m and the EBITDA improved by 23.8 per cent to US$163.8m. The trading profit rose by 73.4 per cent to US$80.3m and after a net interest charge that was 7.4 per cent lower at US$25.1m, the pre-tax profit emerged at US$52.0m compared with US$19.1m and the n...
Holcim Philippines 1H14 net profit up on strong sales
Holcim Philippines booked a net profit of PHP3.32bn (US76.5m) in the first half of 2014, up 8.7 per cent compared to the same period of last year. The country’s largest cement producer registered record sales as construction activity went into full swing during the summer months. Second-quarter revenues rose YoY by 8.5 per cent to PHP1.8bn. “On top of the sustained government and private ...
Israel: antitrust moves to increase competition
Israel’s antitrust authority is taking steps to introduce competition in the domestic cement market by calling on the country’s dominant producer to make a plant disposal or adjust discounts to its largest customers. Antitrust Commissioner David Gilo has outlined plans to force Nesher to sell its Har Tov plant which produces about 1Mta of cement and accounts for about 30 per cent of domestic...
Chettinad increases holding in Anjani Portland Cement, India
Chettinad Cement Corp has increased its holding in Anjani Portland Cement to 66.08 per cent by acquiring a 17.08 per cent share through an open offer. In March, the company had entered into a share purchase agreement to acquire a 61.74 stake in Anjani Portland. Chettinad Cement has said that its agreement with promoters of Anjani Portland has a built-in flexibility to ensure that its holdin...
UCC first-half net profit surges, UAE
Union Cement Company (UCC) net profit surged 181 per cent to AED59.4m (US$988,165) in the first half of 2014 compared to AED21.15m in 1H13. In its statement to the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange UCC said its second quarter results showed a net profit of AED41.25m versus AED15.5m during the same period of last year.
Tvornica Cementa Kakanj first-half net profit increases
Bosnia-based Tvornica Cementa Kakanj (TCK) net profit rose by 6.25 per cent to BAM8.5m (EUR4.3m) in the first half of 2014 compared to BAM8m a year earlier, the company said on Friday. The HeidelbergCement group company said first-half operating income decreased by 1.5 per cent YoY to BAM31.9m while operating costs fell to BAM23.2m from BAM24.5m. TCK is based in Kakanj, in the Muslim-Croa...
Pacasmayo cement volumes rise 3.5% in first six months
Peruvian producer Cementos Pacasmayo reported a 3.5 per cent increase in cement sales volumes for the first six months of the year, exceeding the national average of 0.84 per cent. Consolidated sales increased 2.9 per cent YoY in the first half of 2014. Higher cement sales and a 57.2 per cent increase in quicklime dispatches were offset by a decline in concrete sales. Gross profit fell 4...
Paraguay: INC to increase output by 25% by March 2015
Following the upgrade of its cement mill at Villeta, Paraguay's Industria national de Cemento (INC) expects to increase its production by 25 per cent from March 2015, according to the company's president, Jorge Mendez. INC also envisages a 19 per cent fall in production costs with the new dryer for pozzolana, which represents an investment of US$2.5m. In addition, the company's US$25m f...
Jaiprakash considers restructuring operations
Jaiprakash Associates plans to consolidate its entire cement manufacturing operations under one company that it will eventually list on the stock exchanges, according to local press reports. An official source familiar with the development told Cogencis said that the restructuring exercise that the company is discussing with merchant bankers will award shares of the new company to the existin...
Lafarge sells Pakistan cement operations
Lafarge announced the sale of its cement operations in Pakistan for an enterprise value of US$329m to local producer Bestway Cement. Lafarge Pakistan Cement Ltd, in which Lafarge owns a 75.86 per cent stake, operates an integrated cement plant located close to Islamabad in the north of the country. The divestment contributes to Lafarge’s net debt reduction goals, the company said in a statem...
National Cement Co to receive IFC cash injection
Kenya-based National Cement Co Ltd (NCCL), a member of the Devki Group of Companies, is to receive a KES5.9m (US$70m) cash injection from the International Finance Corp (IFC) to fund its two-phase expansion project. Under the agreement, the IFC will provide US$55m in debt. In addition, IFC and the IFC African, Latin American and Caribbean Fund, will inject US$15m in equity into National Cem...
Eurocement faces losing Uzbekistan unit
Russian cement major Eurocement is facing the loss of its facility in Uzbekistan in a nationalisation drive by the central Asian country. An Uzbek economic court in Tashkent has annulled Eurocement's 2006 acquisition of Uzbekistan's biggest cement producer, Akhangarancement, which could lead to its nationalisation. Uzbek media reports on 22 July said the Uzbek State Competition Committee ...
Egypt: Qena Cement 1H profit rises 14% YoY
Egyptian cement producer Qena Cement’s first-half net profit increased by 14 per cent YoY to EGP165.3m (U$23m) compared with EGP144.9m a year earlier. The company’s sales for the six months to the end of June 2014 rose 25 per cent YoY to EGP559m. In other news, the company’s board has agreed to convert to using coal as an energy source at an investment cost of around EGP400m.
Holcim (Russia) new CEO appointed
Guillermo Brusco has been appointed CEO of Holcim (Russia), effective 1 July 2014. He replaces Gustavo Navarro. Mr Brusco’s responsibility will cover the strategic development of Holcim Group companies in Russia. He started his career within the Holcim Group in 1988 holding various positions in Venezuela, US and Italy. Starting in 2003 he served as plant manager of the Ramos Arizpe plant ...
Eagle advances cement volumes by 4%
In the first quarter of its financial year to 31 of March 2014, Eagle Materials' turnover, including its share of the Texas Lehigh cement joint venture, increased by 17 per cent to US$298.8m. The trading profit advanced by 21 per cent to US$59.8m and after an interest charge 18.2 per cent lower at US$4.1m, the pre-tax profit was up by 25.2 per cent to US$55.81m and the net attributable pro...
Suez Cement 1H earnings rise on cost control efforts
Suez Cement Group of Companies (SCGC) posted an increase in revenues and earnings for the first half of 2014 which it attributed in part to cost control measures. While the outlook for cement demand is more encouraging, energy shortages remain a key concern for the Italcementi group company. SCGC, which operates a network of five production facilities across Egypt, reported a 23 per cent inc...