The prefect of Charente-Maritime yesterday allowed Holcim to build a grinding plant in the industrial harbour La Pallice in La Rochelle, western France.

Holcim will invest EUR70m (US$92.6m) in the project through its local subsidiary Holcim France, as part of its national coverage strategy. Holcim is currently number three on the French cement market.

The construction of the new plant is scheduled to start in April 2011, and it has to become operational in 2013. The plant should reach annual production of about 580,000t of cement. It will create 22 job positions, which are expected to grow to about a hundred in the future.