The demand for aggregates in France reached 435 million tonnes in 2019, according to data from UNICEM, the national quarry industry and construction materials association. Most of French aggregates production (65%) is used for road construction/maintenance and railways, network and infrastructure, 27% is dedicated to concrete production, and 7% to coated road materials.
UNICEM says it expects overall production to be down between -15% to -20% in 2020, much of this decline stemming from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a statement issued at the end of July UNICEM commented on how aggregates market conditions had unfolded this year: “While the activity indicators for the very beginning of 2020 seemed rather well oriented with a certain strengthening of the production of materials, the arrival of the Coronavirus epidemic on French territory and the start of containment in mid-March put a stop to a large part of economic activities, especially in the construction sector.”
In terms of materials, UNICEM said that activity plunged over the first four months of the year, while in mid-June, even if almost all sites were open, their activity rate still remained at -5% to -10% below their pre-crisis level.
Mathieu Hiblot, secretary general of the National Union of Aggregate Producers (UNPG), says that over the last two years the works related to the massive ‘Le Grand Paris’ urban renovation project in the French capital have had the biggest influence on demand for aggregates and ready-mixed concrete.
“This effect applies both in the Ile de France region, but also in neighbouring regions that supply materials for the construction of stations, roads, housing and business premises etc.” says Hiblot.
Started in 2007 under Nicolas Sarkozy’s presidency, the Grand Paris scheme encompasses large and iconic initiatives such as the Grand Paris Express public transport project, a rethinking of road transport, the creation and strengthening of urban centres, better integration between districts, and preservation of the green belt.
Etienne Lalande, Terex Trucks regional sales director for France, Germany, Central Europe, North Africa and the Middle East says that the Seine-Nord Europe Canal is another important project that is expected to boost the French construction sector and provide business opportunities for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). The scheme will involve the construction of a 107km inland waterway link extending from France to Belgium, connecting the Seine basin north of Paris to the Rhine basin and the northern European waterway network.
“For the construction [of the Seine-Nord Europe Canal] 55 million m3 of earth will have to be excavated and transported,” Lalande says. “Robust and reliable dump trucks like the [Terex Trucks] TA300 and TA400 are the natural choice for this task.”
Florient Myrope, GCI (global construction & infrastructure) marketing manager at Bergerat Monnoyeur, dealer in France for quarrying equipment manufacturer Caterpillar, says: “The Grand Paris project is moving forward, the 2024 Olympics Games [in Paris] are coming up. There is mid-term activity for sure.”
In terms of how the French aggregates sector can recover from the pandemic, Myrope says this will depend on France’s aid plans for the construction and building sectors, but he adds that Caterpillar believes that demand will still be strong in 2020 and good in 2021.
He says that, for the most part, quarries in France did not stop producing during the health crisis, although they were no longer selling material.
“Quarries used that time to reorganise their stocks and take care of the crushing of non-treated demolition materials,” says Myrope. “On the balance sheet, the months of April and May were very weak in terms of generated revenue but made it possible to organise a good recovery in June and July.”
Hiblot says that, although quarries and materials production sites were heavily affected by the drop in activity, they were very quickly reopened, or even still available during the containment period.
“The configuration of the production sites – outside and with few contacts – explains why, at the beginning of May, at the height of the crisis, nearly 88% of the sites were open,” he says, adding that it was chiefly the lack of demand that prevented quarrying activity.
Since the deconfinement period, aggregates production activity has picked up again. Hiblot says that aggregates production was at around 75% of the normal level in May and around 100% or even more in June, according to the latest UNICEM surveys. Moreover, by mid-June, almost all France’s materials production sites were open (98%).
“The COVID-19 pandemic has affected almost all markets and industries and France was no exception, with many activities coming to a standstill,” says Lalande. “However, the population has been returning to work and our dealers are once again busy with their sales activities.”
Of the annual 435 million tonnes of aggregates in 2019, 314 million tonnes were produced in quarries and 121 million tonnes (28%) came from recycling. Recycling in quarries, with materials from demolition, has been growing rapidly for the last five years.
This is a fundamental trend that will continue to grow in the coming years, according to Myrope.
“We can see it all over the country. The large quarries all have their own areas dedicated to this activity, and we know that it is profitable,” he adds. “This trend will be confirmed in 2020, and the customers of quarries are increasingly demanding this share of recycling in their requests.”
Hiblot estimates that the use of recycled aggregates has doubled over the last ten years, which has led to a decrease in aggregates production at French quarries.
Over the last 20-30 years, the averageannual production level of aggregates in France has been around 370-380 million tonnes. Since aggregates demand peaked in 2008, French producers are now producing 100 million tonnes a year less. This can be explained by a sharp drop in demand and a significant increase in aggregates recycling, according to Hiblot.
“Today’s production does not cover the entire demand and requirements for aggregates,” Hiblot says. “Indeed, in addition to the different substances extracted (which varies according to the uses and destinations of the aggregates - concrete, asphalt mixes, ballast, public works uses, etc.), a significant proportion of materials are produced in the circular economy through recycling and recovery.”
In 2018, the demand for aggregates in France was estimated at 445 million tonnes, of which one-third was accounted for by recycled materials.
Major building materials suppliers in the French market expect a heavy ongoing impact on their business from COVID.
In its 2020 half year report, building materials supplier LafargeHolcim said that cement volumes in some major European markets such as France had been particularly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic with construction activity heavily down compared to less affected territories like Germany, Switzerland and Eastern Europe. The group’s cement volumes in Europe in H2 2020 reached 20.9 million tonnes sold, or a 7.0% decline on a like-for-like basis compared to 2019.
HeidelbergCement became a large player in the French building materials market through its acquisition of Italcementi in the second half of 2016. This deal saw it take ownership of Ciments Calcia (cement production and distribution), Unibéton (ready-mixed concrete), GSM (aggregates production and distribution) and Socli (lime production). HeidelbergCement also owns Tratel, a major transport company of pulverulent/bulk powder products.
In June 2019 HeidelbergCement also finalised the acquisition of 100% shares in the aggregates and ready-mixed concrete activities of Cemex in central France. This deal saw it acquire production sites and distribution facilities for aggregates, including 28 ready-mixed concrete plants and seven aggregates quarries, strengthening the group’s vertically integrated market position in central France.
In its financial report for the first half of 2020 HeidelbergCement said that economies in countries such as France suffered significantly in the first half of 2020 due to the pandemic. For the full year, the European Commission expects a decline in economic output of over 10% in France.
In terms of products that are most in demand from French quarry operators Florient Myrope says rigid trucks are very popular, such as Caterpillar’s range of 770G to 777G (100 tonne) models.
He adds that Caterpillar wheeled loaders are also in demand: “For wheeled loaders working at the quarry loading sites from the 950M to the 980M, and for those working at the quarry face, from the 980M to the 992K. Those models combine maximum driving comfort with minimum fuel consumption for optimum efficiency.
“But it’s not just about the equipment, quarries constantly strive to maximise their productivity, and of course, safety is paramount.”
To meet this requirement and support its customers, he adds that Caterpillar has developed a range of services and connected solutions such as the Cat Driver Safety System (DSS), an in-cab monitoring technology that helps keep operators alert. It also provides proximity awareness systems, and fleet management solutions to increase fleet utilisation, control costs and use capital more efficiently.
France is the second-biggest market for articulated trucks in Europe and an important market for Terex Trucks. “The largest of our two articulated dump trucks, the TA400, is the most popular with customers in the French quarrying industry due to its bigger payload,” says regional sales manager Etienne Lalande.
“Customers are looking for robust haulers with a strong body and low operating cost, as well as quarry tyres and telematics – all of which our trucks can deliver. One of the reasons customers choose our trucks is because they are robust and reliable. At a quarry, continuous production is key – so you need a durable truck that will deliver high uptime.”
He adds that another important aspect for customers is aftersales service. Terex Trucks is expanding its distribution network in France and currently has four dealers: The Manu Lorraine Group, Framateq Sud-Est, Promatex and Griset Materiel.
“All our dealers have a strong reputation for customer service excellence and a vast amount of experience,” he says. “They sell both the Terex Trucks TA300 and TA400 articulated haulers, as well as stocking parts and components.”
Framateq recently sold one of Terex Trucks’ upgraded TA300s to a company in the south-east of France, which is using the truck at a quarry. Lalande says the hauler delivers a 5% improvement in fuel efficiency, a 5 km/h increase in speed to 55 km/h, an extended 4,000 hours oil change period and enhanced performance.
Founded in 1996, Griset Materiel was relatively recently appointed as a Terex Trucks dealer. It sells, services and repairs construction equipment from two locations in the Rhône-Alpes area.
Looking ahead at potential developments in the quarrying and aggregates sector over the next 18 months, Myrope says: “We notice a trend for tertiary material demand (0-35mm diameter) for surface layer road maintenance and concrete. Less demand for primary and secondary aggregates which sometimes need to be re-crushed in some quarries.”
Mathieu Hiblot of the UNPG says the best-case current scenario is a level of activity close to 10% below normal at the end of 2020. In other words, beyond the technical rebound of the summer, activity would not return to its ‘normal’ level and the year 2020 would end at 15% down for aggregates. Fiscal 2021 would also remain below normal, in part because of the effects of the pandemic.
The construction project pipeline in France provides cause for optimism, having been estimated at a total value of €374.8bn. Under the Housing First plan, the French government is investing €4bn to build 40,000 affordable housing units per year across the country until 2023.
Source: UNPG
