The Sri Lanka Cement Corporation (SLCC) has started work on restoring the Kankesanthruai cement plant while taking action to assess the quality of the clinker stock available at the unit, according to officials. The factory closed down in 1990 following the escalation of violence between the country’s security forces and the LTTE.

SLCC Chairman Sisira Paranagama said that the Corporation was currently studying three main options. Among them was the recommencement of production activities at Kankesanthurai by re-commissioning the packing plant, initially operating with imported bulk cement, the grinding and packing operations by importing clinker required, and also the integrated operations of cement manufacture from basic raw materials available in the locality.

In 2010, the company imported 36,260Mt of OPC under the “Kankesan” brand and marketed it at below market prices in an attempt to supply quality cement at affordable prices to end-users, effectively stopping the escalation of cement prices. “We were able to make a moderate profit of LKR5m(US$45,333) in 2010 and the profit as at June 2011 was LKR5.7m,” Mr Paranagama revealed.

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