Holcim said it would suspend its CAD250m (US$225m) investment to expand capacity at its Joliette works in Canada given the potential economic uncertainty caused by the new Port-Daniel-Gascons cement works in Gaspésie, Québec, local press have reported. The Québec government recently awarded a CAD250m grant and tax benefits for 10 years to the greenfield project by McInnis Ciment.

"We put the project on hold until we know really what impact the arrival of the new plant. We do not want to put money when you consider that the market is at risk, " Jean-Maurice Forget, senior vice president of Holcim Canada, told Les Affaires newspaper.

Despite assurances given otherwise, Mr Forget and François Godin, CEO of Holcim in Joliette, believe the Port-Daniel-Gascons plant would encroach on the existing Québec market. "The government ensures that the new plant is an export market and does not affect the Québec market. But we are very skeptical, " says Forget. While it is difficult to assess the real impact at present, output at Joliette could fall by up to 40 per cent, according to the Holcim executives.