PARAGUAY: INC producirá 1.000.000 bolsas de cemento con el clínker de España

La Industria Nacional del Cemento (INC) podrá producir 1.000.000 de bolsas de cemento sumando la producción de la materia prima en Vallemí con el clínker importado de la empresa Molín España, como parte de un contrato con Cemento Artigas, de Uruguay, según informó el gerente industrial de la empresa Claudio Montiel.

“Lo que llegó ahora, más los 25.000 toneladas de clínker que tenemos nosotros, equivale aproximadamente a 1.000.000 de bolsas de cemento”, señaló. La producción actual, llega a los 1.300.000 bolsas aproximadamente al mes, según el funcionario.

La inversión es de 122 dólares por cada tonelada del producto que constituye la principal materia prima para producir cemento. Considerando que llegó un total de 20.000 toneladas, la inversión equivalente es de 24,4 millones de dólares para la cementera.

Según Claudio Montiel, la producción de clínker en Vallemí le cuesta de 95 a 105 dólares por tonelada a la INC, es decir, importar le sale unos 15 dólares más por tonelada a la cementera, cuya producción no es suficiente para mantener la molienda en un 100% de funcionamiento.

El horno de Vallemí tiene una capacidad de producción de 2.000 toneladas de clínker por día, lo que le permite a la cementera producir un poco más de 50.000 bolsas por día, pero no es suficientes para cubrir la creciente demanda.

EUROPE: Anglo American y Lafarge fusionan su negocio de cemento en Reino Unido

Anglo American y Lafarge han alcanzado un acuerdo para fusionar sus negocios de cemento y materiales de construcción en Reino Unido en una 'joint venture' al 50%, según informaron ambas empresas.

La cifra de negocio combinada de los activos integrados en esta nueva sociedad alcanzó en 2010 los 1.830 millones de libras (2.181 millones de euros) y un resultado bruto de explotación de 210 millones de libras (250 millones de euros).

Por otro lado, Anglo American informó de que obtuvo un beneficio neto de 6.544 millones de dólares (4.816 millones de euros) en 2010, un 170% más que en el año anterior, mientras que su facturación aumentó un 34%, hasta 32.929 millones de dólares (24.229 millones de euros).

A este respecto, la consejera delegada de la compañía minera, Cynthia Carroll, destacó que Anglo American completó a lo largo del año una serie de desinversiones en negocios no estratégicos y ha superado todas las expectativas de optimización de activos.

De este modo, Carroll considera que, a pesar de que persisten incertidumbres sobre el futuro inmediato, a medio y largo plazo prevé un aumento de la demanda de materias primas por el crecimiento de las economías emergentes.

EUROPE: European Cement Earnings Preview

HeidelbergCement's preliminary results, released last week, give us a better idea of what to expect when fellow European cement companies Lafarge and Holcim report in the coming weeks. For the fourth quarter, Heidelberg mentioned that the early winter start in Europe hurt demand for cement, aggregates, and concrete shipments. While Lafarge and Holcim may report relatively weak European volumes due to the weather, we view this as a timing issue rather than an indication of the health of construction activity. Given still-weak demand for building materials in developed markets and rising energy prices, we expect cost controls to be a key theme for both Lafarge and Holcim. Therefore, we look for both firms to mention progress on increasing their ability to use alternative fuels to heat their cement kilns.

SAUDI ARABIA: Yanbu Cement to Double Production Capacity in 2011

Yanbu Cement Co. said a new production line will start operations in the third-quarter, doubling output capacity at Saudi Arabia’s fifth largest clinker maker

The new line, the fifth, will increase Yanbu Cement’s annual production capacity by 3.6 million metric tons to 7 million metric tons, said general manager Saud Saleh Islam in an e-mailed reply to questions.

Saudi Arabia, the largest Arab economy, is increasing cement production to cope with a real estate boom and demand in infrastructure projects.

EEUU: The Flashlight at the End of the Tunnel Can we cement a fragile recovery in 2011?

Statistics often mask a reality that is more complex than the numbers.  The US has been in recovery for over a year, yet most Americans will tell you that it feels as if it has not even started.  In Canada, our recession was the mildest of all the industrialized nations yet our mindset is still influenced by the slow recovery of our southern neighbour.  Economists in both countries have said that employment growth is the key to sustaining the recovery; consumer confidence and, eventually, consumer spending must be strengthened via income growth overall.  Those who are already employed need to have more disposable income in order to increase household spending and those who successfully return to the workforce must re-initiate their normal spending levels.  Increased consumer spending and confidence are self-re-enforcing and given that consumer spending is now 65% of all North American economic activity, there can be no sustained recovery without a growing workforce.

Throughout 2010 most corporations rebuilt their profitability without rehiring workers, seeking profits through higher productivity.  That trick has to come to an end as eventually companies realize that they need to expand their workforces to sustain the supply of good and services.  We finally saw companies start hiring in earnest in the last quarter and now both the US and Canadian economies are creating jobs consistent with their long term monthly averages.

The U.S. has a lot of catching up to do – they lost over 8 million jobs during their two year recession and have only added back just over 1 million workers.  Canada, in contrast, lost only 400,000 jobs during its 9 month recession and has added back almost all of those.  Indeed, Canada is poised to outstrip the U.S. in relative job growth in 2011.

Exhibit 1: Canada vs. U.S. monthly unemployment rate (percent) seasonally adjusted data

Data sources (seasonally adjusted): Statistics Canada and U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

(Department of Labor). / Chart: CanaData - Reed Construction Data.

For full-time workers the only way to increase their spending power is via wage hikes, and exhibit 2 looks at the relationship between U.S. wage increases and spending growth over nearly 20 years.  The correlation is remarkable; with 4% real wage growth in 2010, there is more income available to be spent – but that money may be sucked up by expenditures that do not promote economic growth.  Consumers are facing a host of attacks on their pocketbooks for basic staples of a typical North American existence that could dampen disposable income and therefore slow growth in 2011.

Here are the major economic headwinds of 2011 facing North America:

1)Record prices for basic foodstuffs:  The United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization reported in early January that food prices have spiked to their highest nominal levels since 1990, exceeding the previous high set in 2008.  Food prices are at record levels in 61 countries, and a return to food riots is a virtual certainty in the developing world in countries where current government subsidies are unsustainable.  For the North American consumer, foods made with wheat, rice, corn and sugar are going up, as are other staples like coffee.  Consumers may end up having to spend what they thought was discretionary income on the basic necessities of their daily existence.

2)Sustained higher oil prices:  While we may not see the record $145 per barrel price of late 2008, it is likely that a $100 barrel will translate into $4 per gallon gas across many regions of the US and sustain $1.30 per litre in Canada.  Those who recall the onset of the financial crisis in October 2008 will remember that it coincided with record high gas prices, leading many who were faced with refinancing their homes at that time with the stark choice of either paying their mortgage or gassing up the car to go to work.  Oil is also an important factor in food transportation and therefore has a double effect on consumers – in their cars and at the dinner table.  If consumers spend their extra income on transportation, then they cannot spend it at Wal-Mart or Target.

3)Chinese Yuan appreciation:  Referring to Wal-Mart and Target, a lot of those products from toys to knock-down furniture come to us from China.  Consumers have benefitted from almost 30 years of falling prices on a wide range of goods due to the ever-increasing economies of scale afforded to us via Chinese industrialization.  In short, the Chinese made itcheaper and the savings were passed on to us; we bought these goods with debt and then the Chinese invested their profits in the debt that we issued to them.  It was a good game until our debt got out of hand and now the goods are going to get more expensive.  Some economists estimate that the Yuan is undervalued by up to 40%; most agree that an appreciation of at least 20% is inevitable in order to address significant international trade imbalances that have been created by having the Yuan linked to a falling US Dollar.   Referring to the two graphs representingthe US-Chinese trading relationship, Chinese exports to the US have recovered but the rising value of the Yuan is an increasing threat to prices.  After falling during the recession, Chinese prices are rising not only because of gradual Yuan appreciation but also because of inflationary pressures (wages and input costs) within the Chinese economy.  The era of cheap Chinese manufacturing is coming to an end due to internal structural changes in their economy and the effect will be amplified by a rising Yuan, forcing consumers to suddenly start paying more for goods for which they received only price cuts in previous years.

  4) Taxes, taxes, taxes:  At least 10 US states and one Canadian province (Ontario) are in such dire fiscal shape that taxes will have to rise substantially to fill the deficit gap.  Illinois was one of the first to take the plunge by hiking the state tax rate from 3% to 5% to fill an expected deficit of 40% of their state budget.  Measures such as these will become the norm as states slash spending and raise revenues to compensate for the massive compression of their tax bases following the recession.  Ontario’s go-slow attitude towards reducing its $20 billion CAD annual deficits is going to make it the top debtor province before long and will make Quebec look like a fiscal tightwad – their taxes are going up as well, but not before this year’s provincial election.  Employers will increase salaries only to see those extra funds transferred to the local authorities.  Note that this scenario does not consider the tax deal recently concluded in the US Congress that maintains the Bush-era tax cuts for two more years with no significant spending reductions – that game will also come to an end soon, and Americans will start to pay to close the federal deficit as well.

5)An international crisis ignored so far – Pakistan:  Not enough people are talking about the assassination of Punjab provincial governor SalmanTaseer who opposed his country’s radical anti-blasphemy laws, which made him a liberal politician in an increasingly radicalized society.  The gradual disintegration of Pakistan reminds me of the slow decomposition of the Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman empires between 1848 and 1914 – it happened in small incremental steps, ever weakening the fabric of their governments and societies until a war was unleashed and they imploded.  The danger today is that we cannot afford to let Pakistan become a failed state, not only because it has nuclear weapons but also because of the size of its population, its critical geopolitical positioning and the utter impossibility of occupying its territory to put it back together.  North Americans need to be concerned because the outbreak of a civil or regional war in Pakistan would certainly involve India, possibly China, coalition forces in Afghanistan and the Russians.  It would disrupt world trade and most likely cause a double-dip recession in the West as consumers close their wallets out of fear.  Pakistan’s instability is downplayed on purpose in the popular media because those in charge think that the situation is too complicated to explain to a population base ignorant of international affairs.  Imagine the challenge our news editors are going to face when they have to educate everyone on how Pakistan became a problem so “quickly” and why we were not told sooner.

Every economic recovery faces challenges, whether economic or political.  In the case of the current recovery from the Great Recession, we did not collectively address many of the structural economic and, indeed, social problems it exposed.  We papered them over with cheap government money and hoped for the best, that a future government, or indeed, a future generation, would solve them.  Procrastination is not absolution, not given the magnitude of what we have proverbially swept under the rug.  Our job-based recovery will continue only as long as the problems described above remain simmering and do not froth over.  The chance of all five of these issues remaining contained is not high, but we can probably deal with them individually without throwing the recovery off track.  If two or three become critical concurrently then we can expect the recovery to come to an abrupt end.

URUGUAY: Estudian barcazas para cemento

Satisfecho por el ahorro que le significó a Ancap la utilización de una barcaza para el transporte de combustible desde Montevideo a Paysandú, el presidente de la firma, Raúl Sendic, aspira a utilizar esta vía para trasladar la producción de cemento. Fuentes de Ancap informaron a El País que en siete viajes que se han hecho en barcaza el ente petrolero tuvo un ahorro de US$ 400.000 si se lo compara con la utilización del transporte terrestre (camiones).

Las autoridades de la división Portland de Ancap están "evaluando" esta posibilidad para definir si es conveniente trasladar cemento desde Paysandú hasta Montevideo.

A priori, la principal dificultad estaría por la logística ya que el ente petrolero debería contar con el apoyo de AFE para llevar la mercadería hasta la planta de cemento de Ancap radicada en Manga. "Es claro que parece una alternativa posible porque en una barcaza podemos traer 600 o 700 toneladas contra las 30 toneladas como máximo que hoy traslada un camión", razonó la fuente. Si bien construir una barcaza insume un tiempo sustantivo, una opción "viable" sería la de alquilar una embarcación en forma "temporal", adelantaron.

Por otro lado, los informantes comentaron que se está "en plena etapa de negociación" con una firma brasileña para montar en sociedad una planta de cemento en Treinta y Tres. Se estima que en cuatro meses se definirá si Ancap ingresa a este nuevo negocio.

MEXICO: Prevén aumento en precio de cemento

En 2011 el volumen de cemento presentará un crecimiento de 4.5% ante un mayor gasto del gobierno y el repunte de la inversión privada que ya en el último bimestre del año pasado reveló aumentos de 5.7% en noviembre y 4.2% en diciembre.


Adicionalmente, según analistas de Morgan Stanley, es probable que se de un aumento de precios en los próximos meses por parte de algunas cementeras, excepto Cemex que ya lo realizó en diciembre para reflejar el incremento en los costos de energía.

De acuerdo con las expectativas, mientras el volumen de cemento aumentará 4.5%, el de concreto lo hará en 7%, lo que dará un impulso a la industria en México.

El entorno esperado beneficiará a Cemex, ya que aproximadamente la mitad del flujo de operación (EBITDA) de la cementera proviene de sus operaciones en México, aunque la compañía también tiene una fuerte dependencia de lo que suceda en Estados Unidos y de la capacidad que tenga la compañía en reducir su deuda neta.

"Sin embargo en algunos mercados de Estados Unidos también ya muestran algunos signos positivos, tales son los casos de Texas y California", comentaron los especialistas de Morgan Stanley.

Así, los especialistas anticipan que en Estados Unidos el volumen de cemento crecerá en 5% y 8.2% en el caso de concreto, aunque los precios se mantendrán fijos. Sin embargo, entre los riesgos que presenta la industria está el aumento en costos, principalmente la energía.

PARAGUAY: ¿Por qué no hay cemento?

El sector más dinámico de la economía de Paraguay, la construcción, está sufriendo una grave parálisis debido a la falta de su elemento principal: el cemento.

Según la Cámara Paraguaya de la Construcción (Capaco), entre el 20% y el 30% de las obras están totalmente frenadas, mientras que el 50% sufre atrasos en sus cronogramas de ejecución.

La presidenta de Capaco, Ana Lucy Porro, dijo a BBC Mundo que la escasez de cemento es un problema que se da cíclicamente desde hace cinco años. Sin embargo, la "crisis actual" comenzó en febrero de 2010 y se agudizó a partir de junio de ese año.

El núcleo del problema está en la Industria Nacional del Cemento (INC), la empresa estatal que es la única productora de cemento en el país.

La propia INC admite que no da abasto para suplir las demandas de la industria de la construcción nacional.

"Normalmente logramos abastecer sólo al 70% del mercado, pero el fuerte crecimiento de la industria generó un déficit más fuerte", señaló la vocera de la INC, Cynthia Páez.

Un boom

El crecimiento al que hace referencia Paez es un aumento del 13% en la construcción, en el último año.

La analista política Milda Rivarola dijo a BBC Mundo que ese boom se generó como consecuencia del fuerte impulso económico que vivió el país en 2010, gracias a la venta de soja, su principal bien de exportación.

"El Producto Interno Bruto paraguayo creció un 14,5%, uno de los aumentos más fuertes en la región", señaló la experta.

Muchos paraguayos, como la propia Rivarola, decidieron invertir su dinero en la construcción, considerado el principal mecanismo de ahorro en el país.

Eso llevó a una sobre demanda de cemento, un bien ya de por sí escaso.

"Históricamente el mercado de la construcción insumía unas 40.000 bolsas de cemento al día. Ahora, la demanda subió a 60.000 bolsas diarias", señaló Páez.

En ningún lado

En los últimos meses, la INC ha logrado apenas ofrecer 20.000 bolsas de cemento diarios, que son destinadas a las obras públicas del país.

Eso significa que la mayoría de las construcciones privadas dependen de otros medios para obtener su materia prima.

"En el pasado, se importaba cemento de países vecinos, en especial Brasil, pero el aumento de la construcción allí y en países como Uruguay y Argentina redujo la oferta exportable", explicó Rivarola.

La vocera de la INC dijo a BBC Mundo que el terremoto que azotó a Chile hace casi un año, y el enorme proceso de reconstrucción que le siguió, también absorbieron todos los excedentes de la región.

La falta de cemento y la fuerte demanda han generado especulación, provocando un alza de precios que -según la Capaco- triplican los del costo de fabricación.

Algunos legisladores de la oposición también acusaron a la INC de corrupción y de "favorecer a amigos del gobierno" en la entrega del material preciado.

Páez niega que haya favoritismos, aunque admite que para le empresa es imposible controlar que sus vendedores no están pidiendo dádivas a las constructoras, como también acusa la Capaco.

No obstante, la vocera aseguró que la INC no ha recibido denuncias en ese sentido.

¿Se solucionará?

A pesar de que se trata de un problema de larga data, la cementera asegura que la provisión de cemento se normalizará en los próximos 15 a 20 días.

Esto, gracias a la importación del insumo principal del cemento, el clinker, que es el que está dificultando la producción local del material.

"Este miércoles recibimos 20.000 toneladas de clinker de España, y en 30 días recibiremos 40.000 toneladas más", aseguró la vocera a este medio.

Así, la empresa estatal prevé poder ofrecer unas 70.000 a 80.000 bolsas de cemento diarias en el futuro cercano.

Para la Capaco, habrá que ver para creer antes de dar por solucionado el tema.

"Primeramente querríamos ver que ese clinker llegue a Paraguay. Tenemos nuestras dudas ya que la capacidad de producción de la fábrica es incierta, por la falta de mantenimiento de varios años", afirmó la presidenta de la Cámara.

Sin embargo, la agrupación se mostró confiada en que el desabastecimiento se logrará zanjar para el año próximo, cuando se espera la entrada en funcionamiento de dos cementeras privadas que producirían en conjunto unas 35.000 bolsas diarias.

ESPAÑA: Preocupante descenso en el consumo de cemento, que se sitúa a niveles de 1988

No se consumía tan poco cemento desde 1988. Según la patronal del ramo, Oficemen, el cemento utilizado en el primer mes de 2011 fue de 1,5 millones de toneladas. El colectivo que representa a los fabricantes españoles de cemento avisa: "la demanda sigue cayendo y sólo la mala situación climatológica a comienzos de 2011 ha sido la causa de que el consumo de cemento haya permanecido estable respecto a enero de 2010".

Por otro lado, la producción de cemento alcanzó los 1,6 millones de toneladas, lo que representa un incremento del 7,1% en relación a enero 2010. "Pese a estos datos, las cifras registradas en este comienzo de año para el sector cementero siguen siendo negativas", explica Oficemen.

En los últimos doce meses se ha registrado un descenso de la producción ligeramente superior al 10%, con 26 millones de cemento, frente a los 29 millones de toneladas del año anterior.

El consumo de este material de construcción sigue cayendo, registrando una reducción de casi el 14% en el año móvil (febrero 2010 - enero 2011). El único registro que parece seguir una tónica diferente son las exportaciones que han crecido más de un 31%, con 3,8 millones de toneladas.

AFRICA: NAMIBIA: Cement Firm Donates Computers

Afrisam Cement Namibia yesterday made a donation of customized computer equipment worth N$110000 for integrated learning for children with special needs at Welwitschia School in Eros.

These are 32 classmate notebook laptops that are expected to greatly enhance teaching and learning at the school.

Addressing the event was Dr David Namwandi, the Deputy Minister of Education, who said the apartheid system for a long time had ignored to cater for people with different learning abilities and had failed to give them opportunities that would enhance their abilities and let them contribute in their own ways to the development of the nation.

In this regard, Namwandi applauded Welwitschia School saying such schools are very few and it is the wish of the Ministry of Education to have a number of them in the regions.

He said the absence of these schools in the regions has put pressure on an established few, especially in Windhoek.

"Education will always need some form of technology in order to remain abreast with global trends, particularly in relation to the labour market. Hence our sincere gratitude to Afrisam Cement Namibia for this generous donation of the equipment to Welwitschia School," said Namwandi.

Namwandi stated that schools for integrated learning are very important in society in that they give opportunity to learners with learning difficulties to enable them to attend full-time schools and not struggle in the mainstream classes (inclusive education).

These are children who find it difficult to master skills such as reading, writing, mathematics or spelling.

Namwandi was however delighted that at least a few children with dyslexia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, central auditory processing disorders, Down syndrome, articulation disorders, autism all will benefit from the donated computers and will be able to progress much faster than it would have been in the absence of this customized and specialized equipment.

He commended Afrisam for all past contributions towards entrepreneurship development programmes and training in the Erongo, Omaheke, Otjozondjupa, Karas, Khomas, Caprivi, Kavango and Oshikoto regions.

Namwandi further urged education stakeholders to come forward and support initiatives of this kind, as Government alone cannot fulfill a myriad of its functions.

"The value of education to the economic development of a country can not be underestimated. Education is the biggest catalyst towards eradication of poverty. Such an investment in education is a guarantee towards a better future," he noted.

FRANCE: Lafarge sees higher cement demand, halves dividend

France's Lafarge (LAFP.PA) reported slightly lower-than-expected 2010 net profit and predicted stronger cement demand in its markets this year thanks to fast economic growth in emerging countries.

The world's largest cement producer forecast on Friday a rise of between 3 and 6 percent in demand for cement in its markets in 2011. For 2010, It had targeted a range between a decline of 1 percent and a rise of 3 percent in 2010.

The indebted group halved its dividend, proposing to pay 1 euro per share for 2010 compared with 2 euros in 2009.

Lafarge, which competes with Holcim (HOLN.VX) of Switzerland and Cemex (CX.N) (CMXCPO.MX) of Mexico, said net profit rose 12 percent to 827 million euros ($1.12 billion).

Operating income decreased by 1 percent to 2.44 billion euros while sales rose 2 percent to 16.17 billion.

Analysts polled by Reuters were expecting net profit of 849 million euros, operating income of 2.38 billion and sales of 16.14 billion. ($1=.7366 Euro) (Reporting by Matthias Blamont)

PAKISTAN: DG Khan Cement profit falls 60%

KARACHI: Net profit of DG Khan Cement, the second largest cement-maker, fell 60 per cent to Rs192 million in the first half of fiscal 2010-11 compared with Rs470 million posted in the same period last year.

The decline is primarily due to lower gross margins amid higher input cost and lower selling prices in the local market, said Topline Securities analyst Furqan Punjani.

Sales volume is also expected to have dropped 16 per cent to two million tons due to subdued demand amid severe floods, added Punjani.

The board of directors in its meeting on Thursday recommended 20 per cent ordinary right shares with a proportion of one right share for every five ordinary shares.

Net sales rose marginally by 2.7 per cent to Rs8.2 billion compared with Rs8 billion as sales volume declined. Gross margins remained flat on account of higher coal prices, which rose 37 per cent on a yearly basis.

Domestic cement sales are likely to see an increase in March onwards with rural income increasing following the harvest season, according to analysts. The company’s portfolio – composed primarily of group companies including MCB Bank and Nishat Mills Limited – is likely to keep profitability afloat. Dividend income is expected to clock in at Rs293 million.

Other income, which includes income from portfolio companies, rose 16 per cent to Rs546 million compared with Rs471 million in the preceding year.

Power plant on the cards

DG Khan Cement has decided to set up its second 8.6-megawatt waste heat recovery power plant, this time at its Khairpur site at a cost of Rs2.5 billion. The first plant started trial operation in May last year.

The right shares issued by the company are expected to help raise capital for the new plant, say analysts.

Electricity produced from the plant will help replace the expensive electricity purchased from the Water and Power Development Authority, the company said in a statement on Thursday. The project, expected to be completed in fiscal 2013, will result in an annual savings of Rs300 to Rs350 million.

The company is also considering procuring foreign loan worth Rs1.5 billion ($16.5 million) while equity portion will be bought through issuance of right shares, said Punjani.

Alternative fuel project

The company has also decided to use agriculture and other wastes as fuel instead of expensive coal and petroleum products. A first phase has been completed at Khairpur cement plant in which the company is using different industrial wastes like rice husk, cotton sticks, wheat straw and molasses. This has cut down daily use of imported coal by 50 to 70 tons.

The second phase is expected to be completed by fiscal 2012 at a cost of Rs1.25 billion. These projects are expected to bring substantial savings in fuel costs, the company said.

INDIA: India Cements seems to be a better pick: VK Sharma

VK Sharma of HDFC Securities is of the view that India Cements seems to be a better pick.

Sharma told CNBC-TV18, "I think both Ambuja Cements and India Cements added quite a bit of open interest, more than Ambuja I think it is India Cement which added something like19% of open interest and also the stock went up only by 1% as compared to 3% which Ambuja Cement went up. From that perspective, from this data loan, I think India Cement seems to be a better pick, the overall open interest is also low and the moment can also be pretty fast there. So if somebody wants to trade, options are not liquid here. So may be with the stop loss of 1.5% one can trade this India Cement on the longer side.”

BOLIVIA: Soboce evalúa en Sus. 280 millones a Fancesa, Gobernación califica de irresponsable

Un estudio de la empresa Celfín Capital evalúa a Fabrica Nacional de Cemento Sucre (Fancesa) en costo de Sus. 280 millones de dólares y que para la Sociedad Boliviana del cemento (SOBOCE) le tocaría Sus. 93. La gobernación califica esta evaluación como irresponsable, según el síndico de la factoría sucrense, Valerio Llanos.

“Es un estudio al estilo acostumbrado de Soboce, no es la manera responsable de manejar un estudio, nosotros tenemos previsto ya cumplir con el estudio el próximo mes y ese es el que vale”, aseguró.

SOBOCE compró el año 1999 un tercio de las acciones (33.34 %) pagando Sus. 26 millones, pero el gobierno, en septiembre del año 2010 la revirtió.

Actualmente, la empresa Profín realiza el estudio encargado por el decreto 0616 para conocer la cuantificación del valor de cementera local.

El estudio debe ser entregado el 20 de febrero a más tardar, según lo establecido en el decreto (180 días)

COLOMBIA: Producción de cemento gris creció en diciembre

En diciembre de 2010, la producción de cemento gris en el país llegó a 894.003 toneladas, cifra superior en 11,2 por ciento a la del mismo mes de 2009.

De otra parte, en el último mes del año anterior se despacharon 760.135 toneladas de cemento gris al mercado nacional, lo que significó un incremento de 8,4 por ciento frente a diciembre de 2009 (701.406 toneladas). Según el organismo que maneja las estadísticas, los despachos al canal comercialización, sumaron 8,1 puntos porcentuales a la variación anual al pasar de 444.194 toneladas en diciembre de 2009 a 501.102 toneladas en el mismo mes de 2010.

Por departamentos, Valle del Cauca, Santander y Antioquia registraron los incrementos más importantes al aportar, en conjunto, 4,4 puntos porcentuales a la variación total anual de los despachos.

Teniendo en cuenta el tipo de empaque, la variación anual registrada en los despachos de cemento gris en diciembre de 2010 se explica por el incremento de 8,5 por ciento en los despachos de cemento empacado y de 8,1 por ciento del cemento despachado a granel.

En diciembre de 2010, la producción de cemento gris aumentó 10,0 por ciento con relación al mes anterior, dijo el Dane.

PERU: Despachos de cemento en mercado peruano crecieron 5.56% en enero de 2011

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  Los despachos de cemento en el mercado peruano sumaron 643,264 toneladas métricas (TM) en enero de 2011, 5.56 por ciento más respecto a lo registrado en el mismo mes de 2010, cuando sumaron 609,402 TM, informó hoy la Asociación de Productores de Cemento (Asocem).
  
  
  Durante el mencionado período, la producción de cemento fue de 650,740 TM, lo que representó un alza de 3.65 por ciento en relación con el mismo período de 2010, cuando sumó 627,848 TM. 
  
  
  En enero de 2011, las exportaciones llegaron a 5,894 TM de cemento, reportándose un incremento de 882.32 por ciento respecto al mismo mes de 2010, cuando llegaron a 600 TM. 
  
  
  En ese sentido, los despachos totales de cemento (mercado nacional más exportación) sumaron en enero pasado 649,158 TM, cifra que muestra un aumento de 6.42 por ciento en similar mes de 2010, cuando sumaron 610,002 TM. 
  
  
  Dicha información es proporcionada por las empresas Cemento Andino, Cementos Lima, Cementos Pacasmayo, Cementos Yura, Cementos Selva y Cementos Sur. 
  
  
  El analista de la consultora Maximixe, Nilder Mori, dijo que el crecimiento de enero es bajo debido a varios factores como el cambio en los gobiernos regionales que aún no definen las obras que harán durante su gestión, y porque hay obras públicas importantes que se han terminado de construir.
  
  
  “La producción de cemento mostrará una recuperación en los próximos meses y, al igual que el sector Construcción, este año crecería en 12 por ciento”, declaró a la Agencia Andina.
  
  
  Por otro lado señaló que las exportaciones de cemento representan aproximadamente el tres por ciento de la producción total.
  
  
  “En enero, las exportaciones de cemento estuvieron dirigidas a Bolivia, que por un desabastecimiento de su producción local incrementó sus importaciones de cemento peruano; Colombia también generó una demanda de cemento peruano”, refirió.

EUROPA: Cement bags wins praise for sustainability

A biodegradable and compostable cement bag has received special mention as an ‘ecoproduct’ for sustainable development at the Pollutec business and environment awards.

The Ciments Calcia BioSac, made with Biolice material from Limgrain Céréales Ingrédients, is made by combining fractions from Limagrain maize cereal grains with a biodegradable polymer.

“BioSac uses LCI’s biolice to give an innovative solution to the problems of managing this type of packaging,” says spokesperson Nathalie Gorce. “The free film PE used for product conservation in current bags – along with Kraft-type paper for strength resistance – is replace by biolice to give a double layer to the cement bag.”

INDIA: CEMENT INDUSTRY CAPACITY UTILISATION AT 85% NEXT FY

Enthused by expected increase in cement demand, India's Jaiprakash Associates on Tuesday said the capacity utilisation of the industry in general will be around 75-85 per cent in next fiscal year with the company on the upper limit.

"The demand for cement is likely to grow by 8-10 per cent next fiscal year. Capacity utilisation for the industry,as a whole, will be 75-85 per cent. We expect to utilise 85 per cent of our plant capacity in FY'12," Jaiprakash Associates' director and CFO Rahul Kumar said.

The Jaypee Group flagship is expected to end the current fiscal with an approximately 80 per cent capacity utilisation against the industry average of around 75 per cent, he said.

Cement consumption is set to clock around 8.5 per cent growth this fiscal.

Jaypee Group currently has 22 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) installed cement producing capacity, which is set to go up to 34 mtpa the end of FY'12.

This includes 4.3 mtpa capacity addition in its joint venture with Steel Authority of India (SAIL) for which.

Jaypee Group has 14 mtpa capacity in Central India, 2.5 mtpa in West, 2 mtpa in East and 3.5 mtpa in North India.

The company is setting up a 3.5 mtpa plant in the South which will be operational next fiscal, Kumar said.

Kumar said the supply-demand imbalance in the country's cement sector is unlikely to have an impact on the company's sales since the overcapacity phenomenon is mainly concentrated in the Southern part of the country.

However, the overcapacity situation in the industry has not bode well with the bottomline of the existing players as almost all major players are continuously recording decline in net profit for the last so many quarters.

And, going by a recent report prepared by rating agency Fitch, a not-so-rosy picture is awaiting the industry in the next fiscal as well.

Fitch had said the continued overcapacity in cement sector would exert further pricing pressure on the commodity in 2011, leading to squeezed margin for the manufacturers.

"We forecast around 10 per cent demand growth and over 12 per cent capacity addition in 2011. The overcapacity is likely to result in pricing and consequently margin pressures for most cement companies," it had said.

India has over 260 mtpa installed capacity now. Cement production capacity was 201.3 mtpa in FY'08 vis-a-vis 167.7 mtpa demand.

Capacity went up to 236.9 mtpa compared to total demand of 181 mtpa in FY'09.

The agency further said that the demand-supply imbalance would reach to its highest level in FY'13 to 125.8 mtpa against industry's installed capacity going up to 392.8 mtpa.

CHINA: Jiangxi Wannianqing Cement To Raise 692M Yuan For Asset Acquistion

- Jiangxi Wannianqing Cement  intends to raise 692 million yuan by issuing 65 million shares at 10.64 yuan per share, reports 163.com, citing a company filing. Of the total money raised, 500 million yuan will be used to supplement its working capital and acquire a 50-percent stake in Jinxi Cement.

The remaining funds will go to a thermal power project and the construction of two cement mixers.

Since Nanfang Wannianqing Cement, Jiangxi Wannianqing Cement’s subsidiary, also holds a 50-percent stake in Jinxi Cement, Jiangxi Wannianqing will be entitled to 75 percent of Jinxi Cement’s net profit after the acquisition.

Jinxi Cement posted a net profit of 29.97 million yuan in 2009 and 25.81 million yuan for the first nine months of 2010.

JAPAN: Japan's largest cement producer Cement

JAPAN PRESS: Japan's largest cement producer Taiheiyo Cement Corp plans to raise cement prices by between Y1,000 and Y1,500 per ton, starting with April shipments, to reflect higher costs for raw materials, the Nikkei reports. The industry's No. 4 player, Tokuyama Corp, has already announced a hike of its own, and others are likely to follow suit, the report says. Taiheiyo Cement tried to raise prices by a range between Y500 and Y1,000 per ton last spring, only to run into a strong backlash from raw concrete producers, it says.

CHINA: 2011 cement usage seen at 2.1 billion metric tons

BEIJING (Commodity Online) : World’s second largest and the fastest growing economy, China’s cement demand is to remain strong this year, according to China Cement Association. 

In a report issued here CCA said country’s demand for cement may grow 12% year on year to nearly 2.1 billion metric tons this year. 

CCA said Chinese government's increase in investment in water projects will be a new driver for the cement consumption. 

In late January, the Chinese government announced plans to double its annual investment in water projects to 4 trillion yuan over the next ten years. 

Last year, China produced 1.87 billion metric tons of cement, representing an increase of 15.5% compared with 2009. The output of cement clinker rose 10.4% year on year to 1.15 billion metric tons. 

Seven provinces, including Jiangsu Province, Shandong Province, Sichuan Province, Hebei Province and Guangdong Province, saw their annual cement output each exceed 100 million metric tons.

AFRICA: GHANA: Savannah Diamond Cement donates to Central Gonja

Diamond Cement Company Limite= d has donated 800 bags of cement to some victims of last year's floods in t= he Central Gonja District.

Mr. Kishore Babu, Project Manager of the Savannah Diamond Cement in Buipe who presented the cement to the Central Gonja District Assembly on Monday in Buipe for distribution to the people, said the package was part o= f the company's corporate social responsibility to the people.

Mr. Salifu Be-Awuriebe, District Chief Executive of the Central Gonja who received the package, commended the company for it sustained contributionsto the socio-economic development of the people of the area. He said the Savannah Cement Company had always responded positively to the needs of the people adding that they were good partners in development and expressed the hope that the Assembly would strengthen its relationship with the company. Mr. Be-Awuriebe who readily did a straight forward presentation to som= e of the communities noted that 20 communities would benefit from the donatio= n to enable them re-build their structures including schools. He stated that some of the communities had already started putting up their schools by their own efforts and said the donation would enhance thei= r self-help initiative. Mr. Be-Awuriebe said roofing sheets would also be given alongside the cement to the beneficiary communities.

INDIA: India Cements says Indonesia mine buy delayed beyond June

India Cements, the South-based cement major which had initially planned to start mining from its Indonesian coal mine by May 2010 is still awaiting environmental clearances from the government there.

N Srinivasan, chairman and managing director of the company said in the conference call, “We are waiting for some forest clearances which will take 6-8 weeks more. It will be definitely beyond June.”

The company had announced the acquisition of the Indonesian mine in October 2009 and has since then extended the target to commence operations to March 2011.

It expects to import monthly 350,000-4 lakh tonnes to be utilised for cement which would be blended with higher grade coal, and 4 lakh tonnes for its captive power plant.

India Cements had acquired the mine for Rs100 crore, of which only Rs50 crore has been paid as of now. In the third quarter of the current fiscal, the company imported coal at $116 per tonne.

The southern region which has seen a few price hikes in the recent past saw sales falling by 2.2%; Andhra Pradesh and Kerala saw a sales drop of 15%, while only Karnataka and Tamil Nadu witnessed growth by 2%.

India Cements’ new plant in Rajasthan that started sales since November is selling 71,000 tonnes per month. It is supplying 50% in Gujarat and 25% each to Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.

Srinivasan is expecting the sales to increase to 90,000 tonnes by the end of this month. The company has a debt of Rs2,490 crore, including the foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs).

The company has already lined up substantial portion of the repayment. It had raised money through issuance of FCCBs of $75 million at Rs350 per share which has to be repaid by May.

Due to the refinancing, analysts expect the company’s interest outgo to increase from its present rate of Rs40 crore per quarter.

FRANCE: L'usine Holcim en versio n originale

La délégation rochelaise au pied du broyeur et de l'un des silos avec lesquels Holcim fabrique son ciment normand. PHOTOS PASCAL COUILLAUD

A quoi ressemble le centre de broyage qu'Holcim veut à La Rochelle ? La réponse est près de Rouen.

Dans un méandre de Seine, Holcim bâtit une partie de sa croissance tentaculaire. Le grand large est à 80 kilomètres vers l'ouest, en direction du Havre. A l'est, la région parisienne peut être approvisionnée sans contrainte par la voie fluviale. Ici, c'est Grand-Couronne. 10 000 personnes sur les 400 000 habitants de l'agglomération de Rouen. Une cuvette. Mais surtout, le pivot d'un Grand Port maritime dont le trafic annuel est quatre fois supérieur à celui de son petit frère rochelais.

Rive gauche, il y a ces sept hectares, cernés par un dépôt de charbon et une raffinerie de pétrole, à 600 mètres de la Seine et à 500 mètres de la première habitation. Holcim, le groupe cimentier suisse, y a investi dans la construction d'un centre de broyage de clinker. Formule habillant une unité de production de ciment, calibrée pour 550 000 tonnes annuelles. Ouverte en juillet 2009, elle est encore en phase de rodage.

Une usine parmi quarante

Quel intérêt, vu du littoral charentais ? L'unité de Grand-Couronne inspire en tout point le projet qu'Holcim dessine pour la Pallice : dans ses formes, dans ses volumes, dans sa capacité. Mais certainement pas dans son environnement. A Grand-Couronne, Holcim n'est qu'un élément dans un ensemble industriel dont la densité est sans comparaison avec le paysage portuaire rochelais. Un élu local évoque une quarantaine d'adresses, dont Renault qui exporte depuis ce quai dans le monde entier. Les vaches rouges, blanches et noires de la chanson de variétés sont bel et bien rejetées sur l'autre rive du grand fleuve.

À La Rochelle, la direction du port espère le projet d'Holcim depuis trois ans : il pèsera entre 6 et 10 % du trafic annuel. Mais les élus rétais de la Communauté de communes craignent que l'usine bouche la vue. Ils veulent porter l'affaire en justice. Et des habitants des quartiers proches redoutent les émissions de poussières et de bruit. Mais surtout, ils expriment que les nuisances industrielles sont d'un autre temps : pour l'association Respire et le Collectif non à Holcim, point de salut hors de formes de développement plus douces.

Retour en Normandie où se rendaient jeudi dernier une vingtaine de Rochelais. La direction du port de La Rochelle et Holcim ont organisé le voyage. Donner à voir, communiquer. « Pour que l'on puisse échanger sur des éléments objectifs, et pas sur des spéculations. Il faut que l'on puisse discuter sur des bases solides », considère le président du directoire du Grand Port de La Rochelle, Nicolas Gauthier.Visite sans les Rétais

Dans cette délégation, il y a ceux qui sont pour le projet. Acteurs portuaires, élus de La Rochelle et de l'agglomération, responsables techniques. Ils sont majoritaires. Il y a ceux qui sont clairement contre : deux membres de l'association Respire. Et ceux que l'on ressent indécis : trois membres du Collectif des associations de La Pallice Laleu La Rossignolette. Et il y a des absents non excusés : les élus rétais, pourtant invités.

Chasuble fluo, lunettes de protection et chaussures de chantier pour tous. Le Suisse se montre rigoureux, jusque dans les tenues de sécurité. A 40 mètres de l'entrée, le broyeur, le silo de stockage du clinker, le silo de stockage du ciment ne sont encore que hautes lignes verticales. Mais le bruit de fond n'impose pas d'élever la voix pour s'entendre. À mesure que l'on avance vers le cœur de l'usine, l'ambiance glisse vers la productivité. On ressent les vibrations que la meule géante transmet à la dalle en béton. L'usine en a sous le pied, le visiteur aussi… La porte s'ouvre grand. Le niveau sonore commande à présent d'enfoncer ses protections acoustiques.

Hauts murs, entrelacs d'escaliers en acier, vérins, conduites, ascenceur, mais l'unique cœur palpitant qui bat est celui du broyeur. On ne croisera que quelques salariés. Il est vrai que le projet rochelais n'annonce que 22 emplois au mieux.

Passage par le porche de chargement. Une citerne de poids lourd se gave de ciment. Aucune poussière. La goulotte étanche connectée au poids lourd semble jouer parfaitement son rôle.

Dans le ciel bas, la cheminée de l'usine crachote une fumée blanche. En prélude à la plongée dans les entrailles de l'unité de broyage, Frédéric Amoroso, le patron Atlantique d'Holcim, et Ahmed Mansouri, celui du site normand, ont répondu aux questions. Et notamment celles, parmi les plus sensibles, sur ces rejets dans l'atmosphère. « La norme de rejet autorisé est de 40 mg par mètre cube de rejets. Pour La Rochelle, le préfet de région nous a imposé 20 mg. Mais nos fournisseurs de filtres nous garantissent 10 mg !» Que craindre ? « À Grand-Couronne, nous avons obtenu des valeurs inférieures à 5 mg/m3. Nous avons bien eu un pic, mais de 7 mg. »

Filtres, transport, approvisionnement, jalonnent la discussion. Les cadres se gardent de jouer les conquérants. Technique de base du parfait communiquant. Il s'agit de convaincre, après avoir rappelé - y compris aux opposants - « qu'il y a déjà eu 65 points d'information et d'explication en deux ans sur le projet rochelais. » Mais, ajoute Frédéric Amoroso, « Nous ne sommes pas infaillibles. Cependant, chaque fois que nous pouvons apporter une amélioration, nous le faisons. Nous le ferons. »

INDIA: 7 missing as 2 lighter vessels sink in Bay

At least seven crews went missing after two cement clinker-laden lighter vessels capsized near Kutubdia channel in the Bay early Tuesday.

The vessels -- MV Titu-21 and MV Titu-22 – sank at about 1:00am when mother vessel ‘MV Ramsi’ hit those from behind at 10.65 nautical miles off Kutubdia Light House.

MV Titu-21 and MV Titu-22, which were about to start for Dhaka after loading the cement clinker from another mother vessel ‘MV Amfir’, capsized with six crews.

Another crew of MV Titu-16 went missing after MV Ramsi also hit and party damaged the vessel during the incident.

Abul Khair Group is the owner of the five vessels, reports our staff correspondent in Chittagong.

Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) Secretary Syed Farhad Uddin told The Daily Star that rescue teams of Coast Guard and Bangladesh Navy already reached the spot to recover the sunken vessels.

Abul Kashem, Manager (operation) of Litmong Shipping, an agent of Abul Khair Group, confirmed that seven crews remained missing till filling of this report at about 1:00pm.

SANTO DOMINGO: Cement demand grows 5%, tops 3M tons in 2010

The country’s demand for cement recovered slightly by yearend 2010 to more than 3 million tons, above the 2.8 million tons consumed in 2009, the Dominican Cement Producers Association, Adocem, revealed Monday.

In said the 5% yearend growth in demand occurred despite a sag in the second half of 2010, when it fell from the cuts in government spending, after a first half marked with strong public investment, driven by the electoral process which spurred a 12% jump compared with the same period the year before.

In an emailed statement, Adocem called last year’s results satisfactory, since industry figures reveal a recover of the growth after four periods of decline.

It notes that though the results can be traced to certain evolution of the market and the monetary measures implemented, the industry’s strength, efficiency and yield, product of strong and precise investments of the previous years, led the industry to surmount the difficulties and to continue the sector’s advance.

“In relation to this year’s expectations we consider that the public infrastructure investment began in 2010 will have a permanent residual impact despite an anticipated deceleration in public spending, and will potentially allow last year’s growth to continue,” the cement makers said.

AFRICA: ZAMBIA: More competition needed in cement sector - CCPC

THERE is need to enhance the existing level of competition in the cement industry that can lead to a more consumer choice, says the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission.

Commenting on Zambezi Portland Cement’s intentions to construct a new cement plant in Lusaka at a cost of US$120 million, CCPC public relations officer Vaida Bunda said the cement industry has continued to depict a dominant market structure which has not resulted in the lowering of the price of the commodity.

“The price of cement in Zambia remains relatively high at over US$10 (over K50,000) per 50 kilogramme pocket of cement. It is therefore hoped that the new plant will lead to greater economies of scale and enhance competition to a higher level and assist in reducing the price of this key input in infrastructure development,” she said.

Bunda expressed optimism that the Zambian consumers will soon have a wider choice in the cement industry with the prospective entry of Nigeria’s Dangote Cements, which is expected to build a factory in Ndola rural.

INDIA: JK Cement targets INR 2000 crore turnover

JK Cement Ltd, one of the leading cement manufacturers in the country, has set a turnover target of around INR 2000 crore in the current financial year. This would be a growth of 17.64% over INR 1700 crore which the company had actually achieved in 2009-10.

Addressing media persons here, M P Rawal president of JK Cement Ltd said that “We achieved a turnover of INR 1700 crore in 2009-10 and hope to close the current fiscal with a turnover of INR 2000 crore. 

The growth in turnover will come on the back of the company's new Greenfield cement plant which has been set up at Muddapur village in Karnataka which has a capacity of three million tonne per annum. 

The company has three cement manufacturing units in Rajasthan besides the Karnataka plant. The combined capacity of these plants is 7.5 million tonne per annum.

Apart from catering to the domestic demand, JK Cement is exporting 60,000 to 70,000 tonnes of white cement to African countries, Gulf nations like Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman and also to countries in the Indian sub-continent and South-East Asia like Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia and Philippines.

EEUU: Attorneys general back new cement plant rules

ALBANY, N.Y. — Attorneys general from five states are urging House leaders to uphold Environmental Protection Agency rules to limit mercury and other pollution from cement plants and rebuff legislative efforts to undo them.

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and counterparts from Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, and Massachusetts, who in 2007 sued the EPA challenging old emission standards, say requiring the plants to install state-of-the-art pollution controls from American suppliers will cost $350 million altogether and create jobs while preventing premature deaths and saving billions of dollars in health care expenses.

The Portland Cement Association has opposed the new rules, saying the cost will close some U.S. plants, cost jobs and boost foreign imports.

New York has three plants.

A House subcommittee hearing Tuesday will examine effects of environmental regulation on job growth.

CHINA: Anhui Jianghuai, Beijing Sanyuan, Huaxin Cement

Shares of the following companies had unusual moves in China trading. Stock symbols are in parentheses and prices are as of 2:34 p.m.

The Shanghai Composite Index, which tracks the bigger of China’s stock exchanges, gained 0.6 percent to 2,916.06. The CSI 300 Index rose 0.6 percent to 3,238.86.

Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Co. (600418 CH) advanced 2.2 percent to 12.87 yuan, the highest since Nov. 11. China’s passenger-car sales in January rose 15.3 percent from a year earlier to 1.4 million units, China’s Passenger Car Association said in a statement.

Cement companies: Huaxin Cement Co. (600801 CH), the Chinese affiliate of Holcim Ltd., surged 7.7 percent to 39.93 yuan, set for the highest close since Jan. 18, 2008. Anhui Conch Cement Co. (600585 CH), China’s biggest cement maker, rose 1.8 percent to 34.38 yuan.

China International Capital Corp. said prices of the building material will increase and 2010 corporate earnings may have exceeded estimates last year. Demand will help boost prices while companies including Anhui Conch and Huaxin Cement may report more than a 50 percent increase in first-quarter profit, Luo Wei and Guan Xue, analysts at CICC wrote in a report dated yesterday.

Gemdale Corp. (600383 CH), a property developer, fell 0.9 percent to 7.04 yuan. China may raise the interest rate on existing mortgages for second homes to 1.1 to 1.2 times the benchmark rate under a trial program in Beijing and Shanghai, the 21st Century Business Herald reported, citing an unidentified person close to banks.

Beijing Sanyuan Foods Co. (600429 CH), a dairy producer, jumped by the maximum 10 percent to 7.65 yuan. China’s dairy industry will grow 10 percent yearly with upstream and liquid milk “leaders” benefiting from high barriers to entry and “more visible” growth, according to Citigroup Inc.

AFRICA: MOZAMBIQUE: San José desembarca en Mozambique con proyectos de viviendas, hidráulicos y de carreteras

San José ha desembarcado en Mozambique con proyectos para construir viviendas sociales y carreteras, según informó la compañía de construcción, servicios y energía.

El grupo que preside Jacinto Rey estudia asimismo el desarrollo de una amplia zona turística en las proximidades de la ciudad de Maputo, y de varias presas hidráulicas, algunas para regadío.

San José enmarca su apuesta por este país en el "constante y consistente" desarrollo económico que registra que, en su opinión, le convierte en "una de las naciones emergentes de mayo vigor del cono Sur africano".

En cuanto a los proyectos residenciales que San José estudia acometer, pasan por la construcción de más de 100.000 viviendas sociales y de un 'macroproyecto' de viviendas para funcionarios públicos.

En cuanto a obra civil, el campo de cooperación identificado por San José en el país abarca obras de infraestructura viaria de más de 150 kilómetros de longitud, que incluye un puente de doble vía de 3,5 kilómetros y trabajos de urbanización de unas 600 hectáreas de terreno.

El presidente de la compañía española formalizó la implantación y puesta en marcha del grupo en Mozambique en un viaje realizado al país a comienzos del presente mes de febrero.

Todo ello es fruto de la visita de Estado que el presidente de la República, Armando Emilio Guebusa, realizó a España el pasado mes de noviembre, en la que Jacinto Rey mantuvo las primeras conversaciones y trazó las líneas básicas de colaboración con el mandatario mozambiqueño.

Posteriormente, el presidente de San José se desplazó a Maputo, donde se entrevistó con el ministro de Fomento y Obras Públicas del país, Cadmiel Mutemba; con el de Turismo, Fernando Sumbana, y otros altos cargos y empresarios del país.

INDIA: High cement prices bother dealers

Abuja – Cement dealers in Abuja have decried the scarcity and high cost of the product in the country.

Mr Obinna Uzor, a dealer at the Mararaba Building Materials Market, Nasarawa State, bordering Abuja, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday that the problem had a negative multiplier effect on the economy.

According to him, many cement industries, especially Dangote, are operating below full capacity due to the scarcity of black oil to power industrial machinery.

“You know that the demand for clement is always very high in the first quarter of the year; so because of the scarcity, the price has gone up.

“Before the scarcity, a bag of cement was selling at between N1,500 and N1,550, but now it sells at between N1,600 and N1,800,” he said.

Mr Emelogu Enyinna, another dealer, called on the appropriate authorities to ensure the availability of black oil to cement manufacturers to enable them to resume full production.

He argued that with adequate supply of the product to the market, it would naturally force down the prices.

Mr Samuel Kikiowo, the North-Central Area Sales Manager, Dangote Cement Factories, however, said the company had been producing at full capacity.

Kikiowo also said that the firm had not increased its factory price of N1,320 per bag in the last four years.

He blamed the scarcity of the product on the high cost of transportation due to high cost of diesel.

“I think the problem is the transportation of the product from the factories to the points of sale.

“It used to cost N50,000 to transport a truck load of cement from Obajana (in Kogi) to Abuja, but it now costs between N80,000 and N90,000,” the sales manager noted.

According to him, some of the trucks spend four days at the premises of the company before they can embark on their journey due to the lack of diesel.

Many dealers had resorted to patronising the black market for diesel to power their trucks and they must pass the extra cost to the consumers, Kikiowo said, adding that this informed the high cost of cement.

(NAN)