Cement News tagged under: Cost-cutting

RSS feed

Cementos Portland Valderrivas reduces 1H losses, Spain

26 July 2013, Published under Cement News

Spain-based Cementos Portland Valderrivas (CPV) reduced losses by 98.9 per cent in 1H13, to EUR0.6m, compared with losses of EUR48.6m in the first half of the year before. CPV's asset swap with CRH earlier this year also provided capital gains of EUR104.8m. According to José Luis Sáenz de Miera, Chairman and CEO of Cementos Portland Valderrivas, results for the first half reflect "efforts last year to reduce costs in Spain, where demand continues to shrink, and to improve efficiency in ope...

Fitch affirms Lafarge's BB+ rating, France

15 July 2013, Published under Cement News

Fitch has affirmed at BB+ the long-term issuer default rating (IDR) of Lafarge as well as its senior unsecured rating. The long-term IDR's outlook is stable. The affirmation reflects Fitch's expectation that Lafarge will be able to deleverage quickly in 2013 reaching credit metrics in line with the current rating, despite debt in 2012 being higher than Fitch's expectations and leverage being stretched for the current rating level. Recovery in the US, positive trends in emerging markets and...

Sanghi Industries to invest in logistic improvements, debottlenecking, India

01 July 2013, Published under Cement News

Sanghi Industries plans to invest in the upgrading of its logistics and removing bottlenecks at its Kutch plant to drive down debt. Company director Alok Sanghi said the company will invest INR150 crore to acquire ships and setting up new terminals. Meanwhile, INR125 crore will be spent on removing bottlenecks, according to reports by Business Line India. Mr Sanghi added that the company would focus on fuel cost reductions, improved logistics and debt reduction. The company is currently...

Holcim reduces capital in Spain by 75%

07 June 2013, Published under Cement News

The challenging state of the Spanish cement market has prompted Holcim to reduce its capital in Spain by 75 per cent or EUR568m. The capital reduction will be carried out by reducing the nominal value of shares, is the direct consequence of the losses registered by the Switzerland-based company in the past few financial years. ??At the start of the year, Holcim announced the closure of its Lorca plant as not only production levels were low, but there was also no sign of positive developme...

Cementos Portland Valderrivas revises 2012-21 business plan, Spain

09 May 2013, Published under Cement News

Spain's leading cement producer, Cementos Portland Valderrivas, has revised its business plan for 2012-21 after recording a loss of EUR27.7m in the first quarter of 2013. The company, which is controlled by the contracting group Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas, has announced its intention to dispose of non-core assets and temporarily close plants due to the continuing decrease of the cement demand. The adjustment measures will also include cuts to salaries. In response to the weak ...

Cost cuts, improved pricing boost Holcim 1Q

08 May 2013, Published under Cement News

Higher prices, cost savings from its efficiency programme as well as the sale of a stake in Cement Australia helped Holcim compensate for harsh first-quarter winter weather which dragged on sales. Consolidated net sales for the first three months of the year were 7.2 per cent lower at CHF4.3bn (EUR3.5bn) and operating EBITDA fell by 9.5 per cent to CHF650m, the main reason for which, Holcim noted, was the lower performance by both Indian group companies. However, better results were achie...

HeidelbergCement net loss widens, confirms 2013 outlook

08 May 2013, Published under Cement News

HeidelbergCement said its first-quarter loss widened in the first quarter of 2013 compared to a year ago as sales were impaired mostly by a weak European market. However, the German cement major reported a rise in operating income and has confirmed its 2013 outlook. Group share of the after-tax loss was  EUR235m in the first quarter of 2013, wider than the EUR208m loss a year earlier. Operating income before depreciation was higher on the year EUR219m from EUR212 in the same period a ...

Lafarge sales down on 1Q weather effect, confirms 2013 goals

07 May 2013, Published under Cement News

Lafarge reported a six per cent decline in sales in the three months to the end of March as it was impacted by harsh winter weather conditions and production issues in Algeria and Egypt. However, the group said its performance and innovations targets remain on track and the company is on course to achieve its net reduction goal of less than EUR10bn this year. First-quarter volumes were notably affected by a particularly long winter in Europe and North America, together with a high 2012 co...

Greece opposition party meets with Heracles employees

05 April 2013, Published under Cement News

The general secretary of Greece’s Opposition Communist Party of Greece (KKE), Aleka Papariga, has met with representatives of the Heracles Cement plant at the party's headquarters in Perissos and expressed solidarity with those being made redundant following news of the cement plant's permanent closure. The KKE stated that the sector's trade unions, as well as related sectors, should offer their backing to workers who were laid off, Athens News Agency reported. Last month, Lafarge's Greek ...

Heracles to permanently close Halkis cement works, Greece

27 March 2013, Published under Cement News

Heracles Cement, the largest cement producer in Greece, is to permanently close the doors on its Halkis cement plant as the company restructures its business to adjust to the struggling domestic construction and cement sectors. The 2.6Mta Halkis plant has been idle since July 2011 and management have now made the decision to officially cease operations, as of 26 March 2013. The closure will result in job losses for 236 members of staff. The company stated that: “This decision comes afte...