Siam Cement plans Indonesian cement plant investment

Siam Cement Group (SCG) plans to build a new cement plant in Indonesia to capitalize on the country's rapidly growing demand for construction materials, the Jakarta Globe reports.

Kan Trakulhoon, president and chief executive officer of SCG, told reporters on Friday that the company would invest US$300m in a cement plant in Sukabumi, West Java. The plant will have a capacity of 5000tpd and construction is expected to start by the end of this year.

The investment comes after SCG bought a 100 percent stake valued at US$135m in Boral Indonesia last month.

SCG's growth lies outside Thailand, and Indonesia is a big chunk of that, Kan said.

Looking ahead, Kan said that in the next five years, the company would invest US$5bn in Asean. This year, SCG will spend US$1.3bn to US$1.5bn in various regional investments, but he did not disclose how much the company has set aside for Indonesia.

The group has also recently said it intends to expand into the Vietnam and Myanmar cement markets.