Spanish cement consumption falls

According to 4303 Oficemen (Spanish Association of Cement Producers) 7.2 million tonnes of cement were consumed in Spain in the first half of 2012.

This represents a decrease of 34.7% in comparison to the same period in 2011.

Oficemen also noted that exports have increased by 40% in comparison to the first half of 2011, although cement production fell by 28% in the first six months of 2012.

Cement companies have focussed on exporting their products to other European countries as well as to the US and Africa to help compensate for the lower demand in Spain.

It estimates that throughout 2012, only 15 million tonnes of cement will be consumed, a decrease of 73% in comparison to the historic high registered in 2007, mainly due to the slowdown in the construction sector in the country.

The public works sector is only consuming 50% of the cement sold in Spain, while in the first half of 2011 it was responsible for 64% of consumption.

Meanwhile, consumption of cement products has increased in the area of housing projects by 1% and in non-residential projects by 12%. Each area accounts for 20% and 29% of the cement consumed in Spain, respectively.