Sabanci to invest more in cement

Turkey’s Sabanci Holding cement group plans US$367m investment, mainly for

capacity increase this year, said head of Sabanci’s cement group Erhan

Kamisli. Akcansa will invest US$310m while, Cimsa and Oysa will

invest US$62m and US$4m, respectively. With these investments, the group

will reach an annual clinker production capacity of 11.3Mt and will

also be able to produce 18.7Mt of cement annually, according to

Kamisli. 

After the completion of the investments, Sabanci cement group will

capture a market share of 19.5-20 per cent, stated Kamisli and added that afterwards

Sabanci would seek to expand its operations abroad. Currently, Sabanci is

the largest cement producer in the country and the competition rules do not

permit Sabanci’s further growth, thus the company will seek to expand

operations through acquisitions in politically stable Middle East and the

Balkan states, noted Kamisli.

Cimsa may try to acquire or establish a cement plant in the Middle East,

according to Kamisli. Sabanci Cement companies target to increase net sales

by 16.4 per cent YoY to TRY 1.26bn this year, however expect exports to decline by

2.4 per cent YoY to 1.66Mt due to rising domestic demand. The Group’s pre-tax profit

projection from cement operations for this year stands at TRY 304mn.