Cement News tagged: Corporate
Indian cement: gradual improvements expected
Financial services firm Motilal Oswal Securities has said it is expecting a gradual improvements in the Indian cement sector which is starting to overcome recent challenging times. In a recent research note, the house stated: “We believe that the worst is over for the Indian cement industry and expect gradual improvement in operating performance. Volume recovery (~8% growth in FY13) couple...
Sumitomo Osaka to sell more in-house power, Japan
Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co plans to lift sales of power generated in-house at a Tochigi Prefecture plant using wood biomass fuel, according to reports in the Nikkei. The power generation facilities at the Tochigi plant were completed in February 2009 and went into full operation in April of that year. Current output totals 25,000kW. The group's operating profit is expected to surge 41% to ...
Lafarge appoints new US CEO
Lafarge has appointed John Stull as president and CEO, United States, putting him in charge of all aggregate, cement and concrete operations in the United States. The appointment now brings these Lafarge business lines in the United States together under a single leader, which the company said will focus its delivery on sustainable solutions to the construction industry. Stull has more t...
Brazil may approve Camargo's Cimpor stake – report
Brazil's antitrust regulator Cade may approve Camargo Correa's stake in Portuguese cement maker Cimpor Cimpor but reject the stake of rival Votorantim Cimentos, according to reports by newspaper Valor Economico. Cade has been analysing Votorantim and Camargo Correa's separate purchases of minority stakes in Cimpor since February 2010, which frustrated an acquisition attempt by Brazilian stee...
Fujian Cement to inject CNY950m into subsidiary, China
Fujian Cement Inc is to jointly invest with its second-largest shareholder, South Cement Co Ltd, a combined CNY950m (US$150m) into Fujian Cement's fully-owned cement subsidiary. Its subsidiary will mainly use the funds to invest in its cement and related businesses. After the capital injection the two investors will each hold a 50% stake in the target company, which will have a registered ca...
JP Morgan ups Holcim price target on US outlook, risks remain
JPMorgan raises Holcim's price target to CHF56.50 from CHF55.20 due to optimism on the outlook for the private building sector in the US. "Much better volumes in cement and great weather has provided some hope for the sector," says analyst Michael Morris. Still "risks remain in India, where Holcim is most exposed," he notes.
Deutsche Bank sells 86.58m shares in Shanshui
Deutsche Bank AG sold 86.58m shares, or a 3.08% stake, in China Shanshui Cement Group Ltd at HK$5.79/share and for a total of HK$502m on 10 May, according to a filing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. After the sale Deutsche Bank's stake in Shanshui Cement fell to 6.89%.
Lafarge environmental compliance, Bangladesh
Lafarge Surma Cement Ltd (LCS) which is extracting limestone from Meghalaya for its cement plant in Bangladesh, has said that it was adhering to and complying with top environmental norms in its mines here as adopted by the company in its operations in top European countries. "We are following top environmental norms in our operations here as adopted by the company operation elsewhere in Eu...
Cementos Argos bond offering, Colombia
Colombia's largest cement firm, Cementos Argos raised COP700bn (US$389m) through its bond offering on May 16. The offering was 2.17 times oversubscribed, the company said in a press release. The issuance was comprised of three tranches, maturing in 6, 10 and 15 years. In April, Cemargos raised 300bn pesos through a bond issuance, with 18-month, two and three-year maturities, as part of the c...
Eagle Materials' cement & plasterboard volumes on the rise, USA
Including its share of the jointly-owned Texas Lehigh Cement, the turnover of Eagle Materials for the financial year to the end of March increased by 8.2% to US$581.2m. Of the total turnover, cement accounted for 41.4%, plasterboard for 37.5%, plasterboard liner for 13.4% and aggregates & concrete for 7.7%. The trading profit rose by 14.4% to US$69.4m, but corporate overheads increased by 1...
PPC first-half sales rise eight per cent, South Africa
Pretoria Portland Cement, South Africa’s largest cement producer, reported an eight per cent rise in first-half profit (ending March 2012) and forecasts rises in regional demand. Net income rose to ZAR369m (US$45m) in the six months through March, from ZAR343m a year earlier. Cement sales volumes declined 3% for the period under review, mainly as a result of weak demand in the Western Cape...
Loesche enters into a close strategic cooperation with A TEC
Loesche GmbH, Germany, has entered into a close cooperation agreement with pyroprocess specialist A TEC Holding GmbH, Austria, in April 2012. Loesche is a market leader in dry-grinding and thermal process solutions and A TEC Holding a leader in cement pyroprocess technology. Following the move, Loesche and A TEC will be partners for the realisation of plant improvement projects, environment...
CRH transfers Secil shares to Semapa, Portugal
CRH has transferred its 49% shareholding in Secil, the Portuguese cement producer, to Semapa, its former joint venture partner, the Irish-based building materials company said in a statement. The transfer is pursuant to a call option exercised by Semapa and confirmed by an award issued by an Arbitral Tribunal in Paris, functioning under the Rules of Arbitration of the International Chamber of...
Votorantim first-quarter driven by Brazilian housing and infrastructure
Votorantim Industrial reported that first-quarter revenues increased for all businesses YoY, except for pulp, supported by business focused on the Brazilian market, mainly driven by housing and infrastructure. Sales volume increased in cement, nickel and pulp, while it decreased in long steel and zinc. Consolidated net revenues and Ebitda amounted to BRL5.7bn and BRL$1bn, an increase of 6% a...
India and Russia projects boost KHD first-quarter revenue
In the first three months of 2012, KHD generated revenue of EUR48.8m, which was primarily the result of projects in India and Russia. Revenue declined by 16.9% in a YoY comparison (previous year: EUR58.7m). The company attributed this largely to customers delaying awarding and execution of projects, due to the uncertain market situation. Gross profit totalled EUR8.4m (previous year: EUR11.4m),...
Improved prices help raise Shree Cement’s quarterly profit, India
Shree Cement, which has a strong presence in the North India market, reported an increase in net profit of INR11.28 crore for the fourth-quarter of FY11-12 (ending March 2012) largely on the back of improvements in demand leading to better price realisation and cost control initiatives. EBITDA rose 42 per cent to INR450.40 crore during the period, the company said in a statement. Turnover, ...