News

French prefabricated concrete specialist Rector Lesage (owner of the LB7, Fabre and Rector brands) has won the Grand Est des Chênes regional award.

The company, which is one of the leading European suppliers of prestressed concrete and reinforced concrete floor elements, is also present in Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Belgium.

The group employs over 900 people and has around 20 factories.

Israel-based cement monopoly Nesher has decided to lower its prices by 2%, with immediate effect.

Reducing price is the initial part of a plan that requires the company to have its Har Tuv facility sold.

According to the Economy and Finance Ministries of Israel the move will significantly expedite the government's plan to have the market opened to competition.

Mexican cement company Cemex has bought back all 2018 and 2020 bonds worth US$592.52 million (€461.14 million) and US$365.15 million, respectively. The former were issued by Cemex and the latter by Cemex Espana.

Pakistan's Maple Leaf Cement reported a 12% fall in net profit to PKR 2.80 billion (€21.11 million/US$27.28 million) in the 2013-14 financial year.

While revenue rose 9% to PKR 18.9 billion with retention prices growing 11%, gross margins slid 1 percentage point to 34%. Pretax profit was actually still up 14% to PKR 3.6 billion, but the company incurred a 17% alternate corporate tax. Positively, finance costs dropped 14% to PKR 3.6 billion.

According to the President of Semen Indonesia, Dwi Soetjipto, the cement company plans to invest IDR 1.20 trillion (€78.01 million US$100.23 million) to set up a new cement plant in Jayapura, Papua.

The cement demand for Papua-Maluku is projected to reach 1.5 million tonnes/year.

Demand for cement in Papua during the first eight months of 2014 was at 787,000tonnes. The new plant will have a capacity of between 600,000tonnes-1 million tonnes/year.

The plant construction is expected to take around th

In Algeria, it is reported that public companies are preparing to launch on the stock market.

The Conseil des participations de l'Etat (CPE), council of state participations, has given the green light for eight public companies to open their capital up to investors or launch capital increases.

They are Crédit populaire d'Algérie (CPA); three public cement groups that are part of Groupe Industriel Ciments d'Algérie (Gica); insurer CAAR; quarry specialist Cosider Carrières (BTPH Cosider group); Hydro-am

Cham-based Rädlinger has acquired the Blauberg granite quarry of Bayerische Granit from Austrian Schärdinger Granit.

The deal also included the 18 staff of the Blauberg quarry which continues operation as Rädlinger Blauberg.

Following the proposed merger of French construction materials group Lafarge and Swiss cement specialist Holcim, the new entity has put in place an international network based around its R&D centre in Lyon, France.

In total, the new group will invest more than €120 million (US$155.27 million)/year in research, product development and the improvement of industrial processes.

With turnover of €15.80 billion (US$20.44 billion), the Lafarge-Holcim group will employ 65,000 people.

A definitive agreement has been signed by US-based mining and exploration company, Vanguard Mining to buy 80% equity interest in Indonesian company Yupolo Resources in return for a combination of stock and cash.

It is reported that a 3,500hectare limestone and gypsum concession will also be co-developed by Vanguard Mining in Nusa Tenggara Timur, Indonesia.

Closure of the transaction is expected within 45 days after the agreement signing, subject to review of additional satisfactory due diligence. Deve

Cement sales in Vietnam reached 5.29 million tonnes in August 2014, a climb of 3% from a year ago and 2% month-on-month.

August 2014 is the first straight month that sales of cement hit 5-6 million tonnes.

During January to August 2014, 42.53 million tonnes of cement were sold by companies in the country, a rise of 8% from the corresponding period of 2014.

Of the 42.53 million tonnes, 9.68 million were exported, while 32.85 million tonnes of cement were offloaded in the local market.

In the cite

A trial that breathalyses visitors at Volvo Construction Equipment’s Customer Centrer in Eskilstuna, Sweden before they can operate machines has proven so popular, even among those tested, that the safety measure is set to be rolled out globally.

Volvo CE says there are certain safety rules that can never be broken when operating heavy machinery: always wear a seat belt, drive carefully, pay attention to your surroundings and, importantly, drive sober. Safety is a core value at Volvo Construction Equipme

FLSmidth has opened its newest service center located in Zacatecas, Mexico.

This first phase of completed construction on the center site includes a 1,000m2 warehouse along with 250m2 offices and training facilities. The center is located on a 12,400m2 parcel of land, with room for planned phases of future development.

The official opening was attended by Miguel Alonso Reyes (Zacatecas State Governor); Patricia Salinas (Secretary of Economy and Social Development); Ingeniero Horacio Franco (Mayor), re

Although aggregates volumes fell in 2012, volumes recovered by 6% last year with growth continuing to increase in 2014.

Production has been increasing in both sand and gravel and crushed rock. However, companies in the Midlands and South appear to be enjoying a better recovery than suppliers in northern England and Scotland.

These are some of the conclusions of the annual BDS report on the aggregates industry, Estimated Outputs of Pits, Quarries and Marine Wharves in Great Britain.

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