Jordan demand picks up after a 4% drop in 2008
Cement demand in Jordan has increased during the first three months of 2009 compared to the same period of last year, according to Jordan Lafarge Cement Factories Company (JCFC).
The higher demand is attributed to lower prices of fuel and construction materials such as steel, – – particularly after the second half of last year – JCFC General Manager Salem Soso said on Tuesday.
He attributed a four per cent drop in the demand for cement in 2008 to lower construction activity and housing projects.
“Many construction projects were suspended during the first six months of 2008, but these days construction companies have resumed carrying out their projects,” Soso noted.
Last year Lafarge’s production reached 4.3Mt of cement compared with 4.05Mt in 2007. The company exported 335,000t to Sudan, Iraq and Syria.
Financial data showed that JCFC generated JD49.3m profit in 2008, about the same level it posted in the previous year.
The company’s top priority for the coming years is to reduce production costs by using alternative energy resources, Soso said, noting that JCFC has prepared studies for the use of coal in one of the company’s factories.
“There is continuous coordination with the government to obtain licences for using alternative energy, particularly coal and oil shale”, the company’s Chief Executive Officer Abdul Ilah Khatib said, adding that JCFC will ensure that there will not be any negative impact on the environment.
Source: The Jordan Times
Published under Cement News
