The Moroccan division of Swiss building materials company
Overall cement consumption was down 12.6% over the same period, and EBITDA was established at MAD 695.50mn (€62.07 million), down 21.2%.
Net profit group share came out at MAD 229 million (€20.44 million), down 42.8% against the MAD 401mn (€35.79 million) registered in the first half of 2012.
Holcim Maroc posted a loss of MAD 37.40mn (€3.34 million), affected by the launch of a new factory in Fès in November 2012. It registered a 37.8% drop in ready-mixed concrete volumes as a result of competition in terms of prices. Aggregate volumes increased by 1.5% over the same period.
It is also reported that Holcim's three factories in Morocco are operating at 60% capacity. Holcim Maroc has closed one of its cement kilns in Oujda to keep down fixed costs.
The company has launched a redundancy plan to cut payroll. Management remains relatively optimistic in terms of forecasts.
The market is expected to stabilise in the coming years to reach a level in line with the country's growth.
