Danish FLSmidth awarded Saudi contract

Danish cement and mineral processing equipment maker FLSmidth was awarded a Euro 40m contract for machinery and equipment deliveries by Japanese heavy machinery maker Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries Co (IHI) for a production line in Saudi Arabia, FLS Industries said on January 26, 2004.  IHI signed a contract with Saudi cement producer Qassim Cement Company (QCC) for a new 4,500 tonnes cement per day production line. The production line will be situated 300 km north of the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh. The machinery and equipment will be delivered during the coming 15 months and the production line is expected to be operational at the end of 2005.

The order received by F.L.Smidth includes a crusher, a raw mill, two cement mills and four raw material stores and a bag filter. FLSmidth will also provide supervision and spare parts for the project. The company has previously delivered machinery and equipment to Saudi Arabian cement producers, but this is the first time it will be supplying to QCC.

The order in Saudi Arabia confirms F.L.Smidth’s strong position in the Middle East and the group expects additional orders, the comapny’s CEO Frank Gad said. In Saudi Arabia alone, the population is growing 3.2 pct annually, which combined with improved standards of living will lead to cement consumption growth in excess of 0.5 million tonnes per year, Gad said. (Full Saudi Cement report published in ICR February 2004).