Cement News tagged under: PPC
South Africa: rain dampens PPC Jan-Feb sales14 March 2017, Published under Cement NewsPPC announced that adverse weather had negatively affected its cement and concrete sales in South Africa during January and February 2017. Rainfall in excess of 200mm was experienced in many parts of the country during these two months. The cement manufacturer said it managed to reduce net debt to ZAR4.4bn (US$333.13m) as of December 2016 due to the conclusion of a component of the first empowerment transaction. PPC concluded Strategic Black Partners (SBPs) and Community Service Groups (C... |
Zimbabwe: PPC capacity utilisation “less than ideal”10 March 2017, Published under Cement NewsThe managing director of PPC Zimbabwe, Kelibone Masiyane, has admitted that his firm’s capacity utilisation is “less than ideal” due to the downturn in the country’s economy, the Chronicle writes. Mr Masiyane said that reduced economic activity had led to a drop in demand for PPC’s output but insisted that conditions would improve in the short- to medium term. In November PPC Zimbabwe expanded its capacity in the country with the opening of a new grinding plant in Harare. |
PPC27 February 2017, Published under Cement NewsSouth African cement manufacturer PPC is reportedly in talks with its nearest rival AfriSam Group over a possible merger. Merger talks first took place in 2014 when PPC’s share price came under pressure. Today PPC is valued at around US$823m and has borrowed heavily of late to build new capacity in Ethiopia, Rwanda, Zimbabwe and the Democratic Republic of Congo. However, the slow implementation of infrastructure investment in its home market and the loss of its investment grade debt ratin... |
PPC will strengthen its hand with AfriSam merger17 February 2017, Published under Cement NewsThe focus of a potential merger in South Africa between two major cement producers caught the eye this week. PPC and AfriSam already have a significant stake in the country’s cement market and by merging PPC would extend its dominance to control some 60 per cent of domestic sales, if it accepts AfriSam's offer to merge. As recently as November, PPC’s chief executive, Darryll Castle, suggested that there were too many cement companies operating in the country and that consolidation was requ... |
PCC and AfriSam in merger talks13 February 2017, Published under Cement NewsPPC is in merger talks with its nearest competitor, AfriSam Group, seeking to overcome valuation disagreements that prevented the completion of previous tie-up efforts, according to Reuters. AfriSam first proposed the merger in 2014, when infighting between the PPC board and its former CEO has put downward pressure on PPC’s share price. However, shares in PPC have performed significantly better, increasing by a third this year to date. The cement producer is valued at about ZAR11bn (US... |
Rwanda: new CEO of Cimerwa and PPC Gauteng business unit executive09 February 2017, Published under Cement NewsFormer General Manager of PPC Cement’s Hercules and Jupiter operations in Gauteng, Bheki Mthembu, has been appointed the CEO of Cimerwa in Rwanda. Mthembu assumed his new duties as CEO from 1 December 2016 under the guidance of Njombo Lekula, Managing Director of PPC International Operations. With optimisation of Cimerwa currently in progress, Mthembu is looking forward to this new challenge and the year ahead. "While PPC’s well-established presence in Botswana and Zimbabwe had alread... |
South Africa: PPC to fund Slurry Kiln 9 project from B-BBEE deal19 January 2017, Published under Cement NewsJSE-listed cement maker PPC says it has started structuring its new broad-based black economic empowerment (B-BBEE) agreement, after it had concluded subscription agreements of another B-BBEE deal, from which the firm received ZAR1bn (US$73.7m). Sibonginkosi Nyanga, an analyst at Momentum SP Reid Securities, said the introduction of the new B-BBEE codes meant that companies had to relook at their empowerment deals. “The issue of the changing of the codes meant most companies, especia... |
PPC01 December 2016, Published under Cement NewsImproved cement sales in South Africa and growing volumes in Rwanda resulted in PPC reporting a 13 per cent increase in group cement sales in the six months ending 30 September 2016, compared to the previous six months. Revenue for the period came in at ZAR5.2bn (US$370m), compared to ZAR4.6bn in the six months ending 31 March 2016, representing an increase of 15 per cent. Revenue in the lime business advanced by six per cent while the company’s aggregates and ready-mixed operations recorded... |
Consolidation needed in South African market claims PPC chief18 November 2016, Published under Cement NewsDarryll Castle, chief executive of PPC, has said that he believes there are too many cement companies operating in South Africa, adding that necessary consolidation would leave his firm in a stronger position, the Zimbabwe Herald reports. Mr Castle told the newspaper that PPC was “keeping and eye on the whole industry” and refused to comment on claims that merger talks had been reopened between his firm and the AfriSam Group. “In the longer term, there’s no doubt that there needs to be... |
South Africa: PPC's 1H profits fall 66%16 November 2016, Published under Cement NewsPPC Ltd reported a 66 per cent decline in half-year profit, hit by higher finance costs. PPC said headline earnings per share (EPS) totalled 14 cents in the six months to end-September, compared with 41 cents a year earlier. Group cement sales volumes increased by 13 per cent, reflecting the impact of double-digit volume growth in the coastal regions. Group debt reduced to ZAR5.9bn (US$4.17bn) from ZAR9.2bn a year earlier following the receipt of proceeds from a rights issue. In Sept... |