THAILANDIA: Post-flood work to boost Thai builders, material firms

As water recedes in Thailand's central provinces after weeks of flooding, construction, engineering and building materials firms are looking forward to a boom in demand for repair and restoration work in both the industrial and residential sectors.

Further out, there will be huge flood management projects from the government and smaller-scale work from companies and industrial estate operators wanting to beef up their own defences against natural disasters.

"Demand will be very strong because damaged factories need to recover and resume operations after the flood," said Phonphatra Techakanokrak, assistant vice-president for the engineering division of Berli Jucker Pcl.

Berli Jucker, a consumer products conglomerate with liquor tycoon Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdias chairman, is going to focus more on being a consultant to flooded factories and supply equipment such as power transmission systems and special doors.

"Revenue from the engineering business should grow twice as fast as in normal periods," Phonphatra said, noting that the seven flood-hit industrial estates in the central provinces accounted for 17.2 percent of Thailand's industrial output.

The Federation of Thai Industries says the cost of damage to flooded factories, both inside and outside the estates, could be at least 500 billion baht ($16 billion), but many facilities are still flooded and the cost could go far higher.

The bigger companies on the affected estates probably have insurance for business interruption, but small and medium-sized firms (SMEs), which probably don't, could face losses of about 89-143 billion baht ($2.8-4.6 billion), Kasikorn Research Center said in a report.

SMEs are estimated to need about 65-104 billion baht ($2.1-$3.3 billion) for reconstruction and rebuilding their businesses, Kasikorn said.

As for the residential sector, the state-run Government Housing Bank (GHB) says about 1 million homes in the seven central provinces including Bangkok have been damaged by floods.

"Single detached houses that were flooded to knee level should require spending of over 100,000 baht ($3,200) per unit for repairs, while town houses should need more than 10,000 baht," said Samma Kitsin, director of GHB's real estate information centre.

Demand for furniture and building materials such as cement and tile products will be strong. Prolonged exposure to floodwater can damage tile floors and make wooden doors swell until they are unusable.

All this should boost the outlook of Home Product Center Pcl , rival Siam Global House Pcl and tile maker Dynasty Ceramic Pcl, analysts said.

Analysts said the likely winners from flood management projects will be the country's top cement producer, Siam Cement Pcl, second-ranked Siam City Cement Pcl and top contractor Italian-Thai Development Pcl.

"For construction materials, we like Siam Cement and Dynasty Ceramic," said KGI Securities analyst Rakpong Chaisuparakul.

Siam Cement should benefit from increased cement demand in the first half of 2012, while Dynasty should see higher residential demand for low-end tile products, the broker said.

Shares in Siam Cement have risen 10 percent in the past month, outperforming a rise of nearly 4 percent in the main index. Home Pro rose 13 percent in the same period.

"Homepro is, in our view, the only retail name benefiting from post-flood activity," said Suchart Techaposai, head of Research at Citigroup in Thailand.

Corporate credit demand is expected to be strong in the first quarter as companies and industrial estates draw down more funds than usual to restore operations and ramp up capacity, KGI said, adding it liked banks with strong corporate business such as Kasikornbank and leader Bangkok Bank Pcl.

Once the government draws up plans for large infrastructure projects to prevent floods in the future, contractors such as Nawarat Patanakarn Pcl, a major listed construction company, should feel the benefit.

"We should see a clearer picture about the government budget on post-flood large projects in the next financial year, starting from October 2012," said Vajraput Vajrabhaya, the general manager of Nawarat Patanakarn.

INDIA: Power companies fail to lift e-auctioned coal

50 lakh tonnes of coal offered by CIL in October remains unused.

A recent and shocking development in the Indian coal sector has brought planners and bureaucrats face-to-face with the stark policy conundrum afflicting the sector. It also brought to the fore the criticality of coal as an input for key infrastructure industries in the power, steel, sponge iron, cement and fertiliser sectors.

It all began last week when cabinet secretary Ajit Kumar Seth was chairing a high-level meeting on coal shortage. The huddle saw Coal India Ltd (CIL) revealing that power utilities failed to lift even a single tonne from the 50 lakh tonne of e-auction coal the state-owned miner offered it in October.

Such kind of a mute response from the power companies to the coal quantity specially earmarked for them on demand enabled CIL -- the world’s largest coal miner -- to emerge clean in the ongoing tussle with the power ministry over fuel shortage for power plants. The Kolkata-based company had offered the quantity in a one-of-its-kind experiment involving diversion of coal meant for spot sales to the power sector.

The ministry had accused the Maharatna of curtailing supply to power companies and selling coal on e-auction to fetch higher prices. E-auction had to be stopped for a few days to accommodate the diversion experiment which worked as a litmus test for the power sector’s offtake capacity.

“Just that power companies could not lift the offered coal proves that banning e-auction, as has been demanded, is not a solution,” a senior CIL official said on Thursday. “Coal India cannot be held responsible for the power sector’s woes on fuel crunch. We have enough coal to supply to power sector utilities, but they have failed to lift it,” he told Business Standard.

The primary reason for the subdued response by power utilities to e-auction coal is logistical difficulty. As a matter of policy, any coal quantity tied up at e-auction has to be lifted from mine heads, significantly increasing the buyer’s input cost. The cost of transporting coal through road is on an average at least five times higher than Indian Railways’ Rs 125-per-tonne-kilometer charges.

Besides, the quality of coal sold in the spot market is also a suspect, according to experts. “While e-auction coal was offered to us, we did not take part because of concerns on transportation and quality,” said a senior executive from NTPC Ltd, India’s largest power generator. The state-owned energy services provider requires over 160 million tonnes of coal by the end of this fiscal to run 36,000 Mw of its installed power capacity.

The Association of Power Producers said the e-auction offered only an ad-hoc window even as the power industry was looking for a long-term solution for coal shortage. “Also, the increased price of this coal owing to transport is not a pass through for private companies,” pointed out Ashok Khurana, director-general of the industry body. “Only when these two aspects are clear that the power industry will lift coal.”

For the record, the demand for coal in the country has grown at an annual rate exceeding 8.4 per cent over the past five years. The supply, on the other hand, has fallen grossly short of it, registering a dismal annual growth rate of 5.4 per cent during the same period. For the current financial year (2011-12), India’s coal demand is estimated at 696 mt, while a mere 554 mt is likely to be available. That leaves a gap of 142 mt -- to be met through imports.

More than 80 per cent of India’s annual 530 mt of coal production comes from CIL. The 1975-founded company sold around 10 per cent of its 431 mt production through e-auction last fiscal, while 18 per cent of its revenue came from the scheme. For, coal was sold at e-auction at a premium of a whopping 81 per cent over the notified price of Rs 900 per tonne. This compelled the buyers to opt for the costly e-auction coal, thanks to historic shortages.

Despite reporting flat production in 2010-11, the company denies any lag in output. another senior CIL official said it “isn’t the power ministry’s business” to question the company’s production. “They should only ask for supply. We are providing it,” he said. Further, “thanks to evacuation constraints, we have more than 50 mt stock at the moment. But this is prone to catching fire. Thus, increasing production beyond a point will only add to stocks.”

A majority of coal transport in the country occurs through the rail route. The coal ministry had identified two chief reasons for last month’s severe coal crunch: lack of adequate rail connectivity to major coalfields and unavailability of railway rakes. That had brought a third of the total 81 power stations with a capacity of 87,000 Mw on the brink of closure. Adding to the travails were heavy rainfall disrupting transportation and a simmering unrest in Telangana region that supplies coal in a big way.

While CIL requires 200 rakes for daily offtake, the availability is only less than 180. Of these, an average 127 rakes were used for despatch of the material to power utilities in October. The coal ministry has been trying to push rakes availability to 180 for the sector.

As for the planning commission, it has identified another major bottleneck in the movement of coal to end-users: the time taken by the Railways for building critical rail links. Four rail links were identified as critical for the evacuation of coal from CIL’s coalfields during the current Plan period. This included Tori-Shivpur rail link in North Karanpura (Jharkhand), Gopalpur-Jharsuguda (Orissa) in Ib Valley, Baroud-Bijuri in Mand-Raigadh (Chhattisgarh) and Sattupalli-Bhadrachalam link (Andhra Pradesh) in Singareni Collieries Company command area.

The commissioning of these lines was expected to enable movement of 130 mt of coal to end-users, much more than the current domestic shortage of 86 mt. However, none of the links has been commissioned so far. In fact, the Jharkhand government recently rejected forest clearance for the Tori-Shivpur link.

PARAGUAY: Petrolera realizará tres licitaciones de fueloil

Luego de haber declarado desierta la licitación para que le provean fueloil, Petropar realizará en breve tres nuevos llamados para conseguir el combustible que desde enero próximo debe suministrar a la Industria Nacional del Cemento (INC). Así lo informó el presidente de la empresa estatal, Sergio Escobar, quien adelantó que habría cambios en el pliego de bases y condiciones del llamado con el fin de incentivar a los oferentes.

Inicialmente, la apertura de sobres se había fijado para el 19 de octubre, pero la empresa estatal decidió posponerla para el 27 de ese mes, plazo que volvió a modificar hasta dejarlo en el 2 de noviembre. El propósito de la petrolera era que se presentaran empresas de gran porte que habían manifestado su interés en participar del concurso, tales como Petrobrás, Glencore y Vitol. 

Sin embargo, el 2 de noviembre no se presentó nadie a pesar de la consultas y pedidos de postergación realizadas por varias firmas, por lo que el llamado fue declarado desierto. 

En ese sentido, Petropar analizó los posibles motivos por los cuales no hubo oferentes y finalmente se dispuso cambiar las condiciones de la licitación, pero manteniendo las exigencias en cuanto a la calidad y las condiciones técnicas.

Modificaciones

Escobar indicó que decidieron realizar un llamado a licitación para la provisión del servicio de flete fluvial, ya que uno de los principales inconvenientes para la entrega de fueloil es la escasa disponibilidad de barcazas. 

También se realizará un llamado para la compra del combustible en condición DES-Vallemí, es decir, en el puerto de esta ciudad donde se encuentra la planta de INC; además de una tercera licitación con entrega FOB en el Km. 121. 

Igualmente pretende obtener una provisión simultánea, de tal modo a que las empresas que cuenten con el producto, aunque no lleguen al mínimo de 6.000 metros cúbicos mensuales como se dispuso inicialmente, puedan ser contratadas. 

Con esto se busca asegurar el suministro del fueloil, sobre todo teniendo en cuenta que en invierno es muy difícil encontrar el producto, porque es utilizado en Argentina. 

El presidente de la petrolera anunció que en el transcurso de la semana actual y la próxima se levantarán al portal los tres llamados de referencia para poder cumplir con la INC tal como se había comprometido Petropar en el convenio firmado en octubre pasado.

El fueloil es indispensable para la producción del horno de clínker de la estatal, se trata del principal insumo para elaborar cemento.

REPUBLICA DOMINICANA: Navieros comprometido en impulsar Centro de Logística Regional que propone END

La asociación de Navieros de la República Dominicana (ANRD), destacó la necesidad de ejecutar la Estrategia Nacional de Desarrollo (END) como instrumento de planificación que garantice el desarrollo y haga al país más competitivo.

En ese orden, Teddy Heinsen, presidente de la entidad asumió el compromiso del sector en apoyo a la propuesta del END de convertir a la República Dominicana en un centro de logística regional para dinamizar la economía.

Las consideraciones del empresario naviero fueron hechas durante el acto de bienvenida a la empresa Cementos Andino Dominicanos como nuevo miembro de la Asociación de Navieros de la República Dominicana.

La empresa opera en régimen de concesión el Puerto de Cabo Rojo donde ha instalado una fábrica de cemento y otra de clinker para exportación.

En la actividad estuvieron presentes, Miguel Chedrauy, presidente de Cementos Andinos, Jodie Bisonó, gerente comercial, Anibal Piña vicepresidente ejecutivode la ANRD, Juan Periche Vidal, Milton La Hoz, Liana Peña y Francisco Arias.

AFRICA: Kenyans will not benefit from cut in ocean freight cost

Kenyan consumers and exporters might not benefit from an expected slump in the cost of global ocean freight, a new report by a UN agency shows, citing effects of piracy off the coast of Somalia.

Kenyan imports currently attract an extra monthly cost of Sh2.15 billion ($23.9 million) that is passed down the supply chain owing to high risk posed by piracy around the Gulf of Aden, the UN Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad) said.

Exports from Kenya also face an additional monthly cost of Sh8.82 billion ($9.8 million) as shipping lines adjust their freight rates to cover the risk premiums slapped on them by insurance firms while navigating the dangerous route off the shoreline of Somalia.

“The scale of the attacks and the size of the vessels targeted are raising further concerns in the international community,” the UN agency said.

“This threatens to undermine one of the world’s busiest shipping routes (Asia–Europe) and chokepoint (the Suez Canal).”

In 2010 Kenya lost Sh37.26 billion ($414 million) in macroeconomic costs owing to the piracy menace, Unctad said, making the country only second to Egypt that lost $624 million.

Other countries that suffered major losses due to piracy were Yemen ($150 million), Nigeria ($42 million), and the Seychelles ($6 million).

Sea trade remains critical for Kenya which relies on it for movement of key products such as clinker, tea, iron and steel, petroleum, grain, fertiliser, sugar, ceramics as well as motor vehicles.

The global cost of freight is expected to fall sharply following a record number of new larger vessels that have entered the market, promising to lower the consumer price of import and export goods.

Data released by Unctad shows that there was a record delivery of new ship capacity in 2010, a massive 28 per cent higher than the previous year, resulting in an 8.6 per cent growth in the world fleet.

“The surge in vessel supply is the result of orders placed before the economic crisis.

“This, combined with lower than expected demand, has led to a situation where there is an excess supply of shipping capacity,” Unctad said.

The sharp increase in vessel supply has been registered in the category of ships that handle dry bulk cargo and containers that are popular with Kenyan traders. “In both sectors, recent and upcoming record-sized new buildings pose a further challenge to owners, who will need to find cargo to fill their ships,” Unctad said.

The extra capacity is expected to slash freight costs on account of lower demand for vessels even though regions such as eastern Africa that are prone to piracy may not enjoy such benefits.

“We don’t expect any major variations in the cost of shipping services until the piracy problem is sorted out,” Abdallah Juma, a Mombasa based cargo dealer said by phone.

Lack of a substantive government since 1990 has seen criminal gangs in Somalia venture out into the Gulf of Aden hijacking vessels for ransom.

This has triggered major increases in shipping charges as the cost of insurance premium for vessels plying the key rout was adjusted upwards.

Freight costs have also shot up following a decision by shipping lines to take longer alternative routes round the Cape of Good Hope.

Analysts with Unctad said the pressure on freight costs around eastern Africa is likely to persist because most vessels have opted to stay on the route around the Gulf of Aden.

Root out piracy

“Insurance risk premiums and the Suez Canal transit fees offset to a great extent the additional fuel and opportunity costs of going through the Cape of Good Hope,” Unctad said.

Several international navies including the US, France, Russia, and Britain are currently active on the waters around the Gulf of Aden to try and root out piracy.

Recent statistics show that the number of ships hijacked off the coast of Somalia continued to fall sharply this year due to patrols and intervention by international naval forces, raising hope for gradual reduction in the cost of freight services along the key sea route.

Somali pirates have only managed to hijack 24 vessels in the nine months to September compared to 35 in a similar period of 2010, a 31 per cent drop.

Hijackings were successful in just 12 per cent of all 199 attempts this year, down from 28 per cent in a similar period of 2010 when 126 were taken over, a watchdog, the International Maritime Bureau, said.

COLOMBIA: Dividendo de cementera Argos crece

En la reunión extraordinaria de la Asamblea de Accionistas de Cementos Argos se aprobó la escisión de ciertos activos no cementeros que actualmente se encuentran en el balance general de la Compañía.

Estos activos incluyen inversiones de portafolio, activos inmobiliarios, portuarios y de carbón.

Los activos a escindir serían absorbidos por Inversiones Argos, compañía que emitiría acciones con dividendo preferencial y sin derecho a voto (Acciones Preferenciales) y las entregaría a los accionistas de Cementos Argos, diferentes de Inversiones Argos, como contraprestación. De perfeccionarse la escisión, por cada acción ordinaria que posean los accionistas de Cementos Argos recibirían 0,31 Acciones Preferenciales de Inversiones Argos.

“Es de resaltar que los accionistas de Cementos Argos aumentarían el flujo de dividendos en 47%, es decir, mantendrían el dividendo sobre la acción de Cementos Argos y recibirían nuevos dividendos por las Acciones Preferenciales de Inversiones Argos”, afirma José Alberto Vélez, presidente de Cementos Argos.

Con este proyecto de escisión que aún está sujeto a aprobación en la reunión extraordinaria de la Asamblea de Accionistas de Inversiones Argos y de la Superintendencia Financiera de Colombia, Cementos Argos pretende continuar consolidando su estrategia focalizada en la producción y comercialización de cemento y concreto.

PARAGUAY: Construcción sufre el efecto dólar y gasoíl

Los materiales de construcción importados, que en 90% son pagados en dólares, registran incrementos de precios en alrededor de 2.000 guaraníes según datos de distribuidores, cuyos proveedores ya comenzaron a remarcar los precios de venta. 

Es que el dólar aumentó de valor en alrededor de 300 puntos en lo que va del mes, según los datos de las casas de cambio, lo que sumado al encarecimiento del gasoíl se traducen en mayores cotizaciones para el comprador. 

El cemento importado se estaba vendiendo entre 50.000 y 55.000 guaraníes por bolsa de 50 kilos y ahora aumentó en aproximadamente 2.000 guaraníes. 

En una suma similar, entre 1.500 y 2.000, se encarecieron la arena, que se ofrecía a 34.000 guaraníes por metro cúbico y la piedra triturada, cuyo valor era de 80.000 guaraníes por tonelada. 

Asimismo, la varilla de origen extranjero que se ofrece en alrededor de 5.000 guaraníes por kilo se incrementará a 5.100 guaraníes. Si bien aparentemente es mínima la diferencia, se trata de una suma significativa, ya que cada varilla pesa entre 5 a 6 kilos cada una, dependiendo de la medida de la misma. 

La disparada del dólar sumada al alza del gasoíl “son dos golpes muy fuertes” para el sector de materiales de construcción, según afirmó Carolina Sánchez, propietaria de Aceros Asunción. Agregó que, debido a la desaceleración, en el sector ya se viene registrando menor venta y con los dos factores mencionados la situación va a ser peor, ya que “va a afectar a la poca demanda que había”. 

Pero también los materiales de origen local registran subas de precios, ya que los depósitos utilizan gasoíl para buscar las mercaderías (cemento, arena, piedras, etc.) y para trasladarlas hasta la obra del cliente. “Ahora todavía no suben los precios, pero van a venir”, apuntó a su turno Conrado Valenzuela, de la Casa de las Varillas.

IRAQ: Lafarge-Run Cement Plant Plans to Triple Production

MerchantBridge & Co. plans to triple cement production over the next two to three years at a plant operated by partner Lafarge SA in Karbala, Iraq.

“We expect to start breaking even in January,” MerchantBridge Acting Chief Executive Officer Eric le Blan said in an interview in Dubai yesterday.

Demand for building materials in Iraq is set to increase as the country rebuilds homes and infrastructure after years of war and economic sanctions. Iraq needs to build 2.5 million homes by 2015, the country’s housing minister said in November last year.

Production at Karbala, now at 576,000 tons of cement, will exceed 1.8 million tons by 2013 or 2014, le Blan said. Annual demand for cement in Iraq is about 20 million tons and existing output about 5 million tons a year, he added.

MerchantBridge completed in 2010 a $220 million investment with Lafarge, the world’s biggest cement company, in which they took over the Karbala plant under a 15-year lease from the government, according to a company statement in 2010. Production at the time was about 300,000 tons, the company said.

MerchantBridge plans to pursue additional investments in Iraq next year, including in the electricity market, where multibillion dollar projects are under way to help resolve power shortages, le Blan said.

INDIA: Cost pressures, realty slump cause concern

Cement despatches across the industry barely grew 0.2% y-o-y in October 2011, according to reports of leading domestic brokerage houses. 

It was attributed largely to a high base effect in the year-ago period. The combined despatches of the leading players - ACC, Ambuja Cements and UltraTech Cement - fell nearly 2.1% y-o-y in October 2011, given the curtailed output at the Aditya Birla Group.

Industry-wide cement despatches during the first half of FY12 had grown nearly 4.5% y-o-y. With the monsoon season broadly over (except southern region), cement prices have shown signs of rising in several regions across the country, on expectations of a pick-up in construction activity. 

For instance, in Mumbai, cement prices are currently at Rs 280-290 per bag, a rise of nearly Rs 20 per bag from the monsoon season. 

Also, in New Delhi, prices are currently at Rs 270-280 per bag, nearly Rs 30 per bag higher, compared to the rainy season. And bullish investor sentiment had led both the Holcimcontrolled ACC and Ambuja Cements, respectively, to hit 52-week highs on November 14. 

However, cost pressures remain a cause of concern for the broader cement sector, despite some easing in key input prices, like global coal prices. For instance, Australian coal prices are currently at $113 per tonne levels and have eased from their average of $120 per tonne in the September 2011 quarter. This development comes at a time when the rupee has also weakened. 

Also, freight costs for cement companies are at elevated levels. Apart from that, home finance rates have not shown any signs of easing, and there are concerns that demand for cement from a key user industry, namely real estate sector, may be sluggish in the short-term. 

Analysts say that although the government has recently approved highway projects, there is considerable uncertainty regarding the implementation of the same and other infrastructure projects. 

ACC's consolidated operating profit margin had improved 130 basis points y-o-y to 13.3% in the September 2011 quarter, helped by strong realisations on a per tonne basis. ACC trades at a consolidated P/E of nearly 19.7 times on a trailing four-quarter basis, and appears expensive.

INDONESIA: Semen Gresik sees slowing Indonesia cement demand in 2012

Indonesia's cement sales growth, an indicator for the strength of Southeast Asia's largest economy, may slow to between 4 to 5 percent in 2012, down from 16 percent this year, Indonesia's biggest cement maker PT Semen Gresik Tbk said on Wednesday.

The firm's CEO Dwi Soetjipto said the easing demand would come as weaker global growth hit domestic spending, which has so far seen little impact from a slowing world economy.

Cement sales rose 52 percent in September from a year ago due to increasing property and infrastructure building.

THAILAND: SCG plans maximised production

Siam Cement Group (SCG) has ramped up production at its plants and is ready to slash prices of some building materials by as much as 60% to serve an expected post-flood jump in demand.

Thailand's top industrial conglomerate experienced a 40% drop in cement sales in the Central region in October, while building material sales fell by 20-25% when the floods approached provinces to the north of Bangkok.

Its paper business, especially packaging, also declined by more than 20% due to supply-chain disruptions, said Kan Trakulhoon, the president and chief executive.

But demand is expected to rebound sharply after floodwaters subsides, when the supplies of some products will face a shortage, Mr Kan said yesterday.

"Plants that have suspended production earlier [due to flooding] such as cement and fibre cement facilities, have resumed and ramped up to maximum capacities," he noted.

Only a few plants in the inundated Nava Nakorn Industrial Estate, such as those of Cotto and Kubota diesel engines, have yet to fully return to normal production.

"We expect all the group's factories to run at full capacity by next year's first quarter," Mr Kan said.

For some products, such as ceramic tiles, SCG will hold a special campaign offering a 60% price cut, he said.

"The fourth quarter will be tough for us in terms of sales," he said, adding that about 200 out of more than 500 dealers had been affected by floods.

Nonetheless, Mr Kan acknowledged that the group's investment plan has not changed despite the floods.

But the business plan that was drafted in September will be reviewed next month to determine the actual business environment after the floods, he noted.

MEXICO: Cemex, en riesgo de contagio de Vitro

El convenio de concurso mercantil de la vidriera puede afectar a firmas mexicanas al colocar deuda; se sentara un precedente negativo, afectando el apetito extranjeros por bonos de firmas locales.

En caso de aprobarse el convenio concursal de Vitro en los términos en que está planteado, se sentará un precedente negativo, afectando el acceso de grandes empresas al mercado de deuda extranjero y el apetito de inversionistas foráneos por bonos de corporativos nacionales, afirmó Arturo Porzecanski, economista distinguido en la Escuela de Servicio Internacional de la American University de Washington DC.

"Yo he conversado con una importante cantidad de analistas e inversionistas de Wall Street sobre este tema y veo que hay suficiente concientización de lo que el casoVitro pudiera significar en el fututo", comentó en una conferencia telefónica.

Dijo que si bien hasta ahora no ha afectado el acceso de las empresas al mercado de capitales internacional, se debe a que el proceso de reestructura de la compañía no ha finalizado.

"Pudiera haber un nerviosismo por las implicaciones del caso de Vitro, que podría afectar a otras empresas de México; la más vulnerable es Cemex, que debe a muchos sus acreedores, incluyendo bancos y tenedores de bonos", indicó el también asociado senior del Centro de Estudios Estratégicos e Internacionales de Washington DC.

"Y Cemex está al borde, tiene problemas serios que no se van a resolver (fácilmente), porque la demanda de cemento va a seguir bastante deprimida en Estados Unidos, México y Europa en 2012, y quizá hasta 2013", añadió.

Cabe señalar que para 2014 la cementera mexicana deberá hacer frente a pasivos de más de 8,300 millones de dólares (mdd). Directivos de la firma han señalado que buscarán refinanciarlos.El académico indicó que cuando fue escrita la Ley de Concursos Mercantiles en México, se concibió como una ley modelo y de primer mundo.

"Parece que tenemos una excepción a la regla que permite a Vitro tratar de crear nuevos pasivos después de tener problemas financieros y hacer que esas deuda inter-compañías sean votadas en el proceso de reestructura financiera y tengan mayoría por encima de los acreedores legítimos no relacionados de la empresa", dijo el experto en finanzas internacionales, mercados emergentes y economía de América Latina.

Hace algunas semanas Vitro fue informada por el conciliador del concurso mercantil, Javier Navarro Velasco, que el 24 de noviembre de 2011 es la fecha límite para recibir la documentación de aceptación al convenio de reestructura (Convenio Concursal) presentado el pasado 31 de octubre.

Cabe recordar que se plantea reestructurar 1,452 millones de dólares (mdd) de deuda con terceros a cambio de bonos por 814.6 mdd que vencen en 2019, así como también 95 mdd en obligaciones convertibles a cinco años y hacer un pago en efectivo de alrededor de 65 mdd.

El monto de adeudos a reestructurar por Vitro incluye alrededor de 2,000 mdd de cuentas inter-compañías, es decir, cerca de 60% del total. El reconocimiento de este tipo de pasivos ha sido el principal motivo de pugna de la empresa por parte de algunos fondos de inversión de Estados Unidos y Chile.

Con base en Monterrey y fundada en 1909, Vitro (la empresa número 79 de 'Las 500' de Expansión) cuenta actualmente con instalaciones y una amplia red de distribución en 10 países de América y Europa.

ESPAÑA: Holcim solicita una prórroga de 30 años para dos canteras de caliza y marga situadas en Gádor (Almería)

La empresa dispone de canteras repartidas en los términos municipales de Alhama de Almería, Gádor, Terque, Santa Fe de Móndujar, Alicún, Benahadux y Huércal

La empresa cementera Holcim España S.A. ha solicitado a la Consejería de Economía, Innovación y Ciencia de la Junta de Andalucía para renovar la concesión minera de dos explotaciones situadas en el municipio de Gádor (Almería) de las que extrae caliza y marga, material utilizado para la fabricación de yeso y productos de similar naturaleza.

Así lo han indicado fuentes del Gobierno andaluz después de que la Consejería de Medio Ambiente sometiera a información pública la solicitud de Autorización Ambiental Unificada (AAU) del proyecto para las minas Mercedes 1.ª e Hisalba II, ya que ésta tiene carácter vinculante a la hora de aprobar la prórroga.

En el segundo trimestre de este año, la Delegación de Economía, Innovación y Ciencia entregó al representante de la mercantil Holcim y al director facultativo de canteras, Enrique Coto y Javier García Dueñas, respectivamente, otra resolución para la extracción de calizas en el 'Piconero', que se encuentra situada en los términos municipales de Terque, Alicún y Alhama de Almería y cuenta con unas reservas de 7,9 millones de toneladas.

Holcim España es titular de siete explotaciones en Almería. En concreto, la empresa dispone de canteras repartidas en los términos municipales de Alhama de Almería, Gádor, Terque, Santa Fe de Móndujar, Alicún, Benahadux y Huércal de Almería para atender principalmente la demanda de la fábrica de producción de cemento en Gádor, además de en Carboneras y Níjar para abastecer la fábrica situada en Carboneras.

EEUU: Forecast Puts Robust Cement Consumption Off Until 2014

Even with an economic recovery, construction levels will remain at new floor levels and lead to relatively flat cement consumption until 2014, according to the most recent economic forecast from PCA. 

PCA revised its cement consumption forecast to increases of 1.1 percent in 2011, 0.5 percent in 2012, and 7.4 percent in 2013—roughly half of the previous forecast. According to the report, large structural issues exist in each construction sector that will slow recovery. 

Recovery for the construction industry is tied to general economic growth and job creation. Job creation will reduce, and eventually eliminate, the adverse impacts of foreclosures, tight lending standards, commercial occupancy, and leasing rates as well as the severity of state fiscal conditions. However, because the impediments to a construction recovery are so large, even if an acceleration in economic growth and job creation occurs on a sustained basis, the benefits will not materialize quickly. 

According to the report, nonresidential construction will also remain low until 2013, and lack of assured federal funding will drag down the public sector until 2014.

ESPAÑA: Cementos Portland (FCC) podrá utilizar escombros para fabricar cemento en su planta de Palencia

Cementos Portland ha recibido autorización para utilizar escombros y balasto de vías ferroviarias como materia prima en la fabricación de cemento y 'clinker' en la planta que tiene en Venta de Baños (Palencia).

La autorización, que publica el Boletín Oficial de Castilla y León (Bocyl), modifica la autorización de impacto ambiental para permitir el reciclaje de estos materiales en la actividad productiva de la planta cementera.

La dirección de la empresa comunicó el pasado mes de marzo a la Consejería de Medio Ambiente de la Junta de Castilla y León su intención de utilizar residuos de construcción y demolición procedentes de gestores, y suelos del desmantelamiento de vías férreas en el proceso de fabricación de cemento.

Así, Cementos Portland pretende utilizar escorias y balasto, procedentes del desmantelamiento de vías férreas; así como hormigón, ladrillos, tejas, materiales cerámicos y residuos en general de la construcción.

La autorización administrativa destaca que la modificación proyectada supone una reducción del impacto ambiental de la actividad de explotación en cantera y una disminución de la emisión de gases de efecto invernadero al utilizar materia prima descarbonatada.

Asimismo, se autorizan operaciones de gestión de residuos no peligrosos como el almacenamiento temporal de residuos no peligrosos, tratamiento de residuos mediante valorización R1 y utilización principal de los residuos como combustible o como otro medio de generar energía.

La utilización de residuos como combustible alternativo en el horno de clinker, queda limitada a un máximo de 100 toneladas al día. Respecto a las cantidades parciales de cada tipo de residuos se entiende que son orientativas pudiendo variar en función de la disponibilidad de los residuos.

FRANCE: Ciments du Lacydon crée un terminal d'importation de ciment à Marseille

FRANCE/TURQUIE. La société des Ciments du Lacydon, filiale du groupe Sylvestre basé dans le Vaucluse et les Bouches-du-Rhône et de la société belge Van Eeckhout, s’implante sur le port de Marseille. Elle y développera une activité d’importation et d’exportation de ciment par voie maritime et fluviale, qui évoluera vers de l’importation de clinker (constituant du ciment) et sa transformation en ciment. 

Le 9 novembre 2011, un premier navire a déchargé 5 350 de ciment dans les bassins de Marseille. Dans moins de trois ans, ce seront plus de 300 000 tonnes que l’entreprise recevra, un trafic qu’elle prévoit encore d’augmenter dans les années suivantes. 

Dans un premier temps, le ciment importé en provenance de Turquie sera stocké et conditionné dans les hangars 14 et 15 que l’entreprise aura aménagés sur le môle G du port. Au cours du second trimestre 2012, l’industriel y installera un mélangeur puis une ensacheuse en 2013. L’investissement total atteindra alors 20 millions d’euros.  

AFRICA: Tanga port undergoes expansion as cargo traffic increases

For centuries, global trade has been going through ports, handling millions of cargo -- both exports and imports -- and effecting trans-shipment of cargo at intermediate ports as indicated in loading manifestos at originating terminals.

In order to serve its stakeholders in the maritime industry efficiently, promptly and adequately, many ports in developing countries have had to embark on growth projects whose objectives are to enhance capacity.

In essence, the focus of maritime industry everywhere, is growth, brought about by occasional developmental changes taking place globally.

Tanga port, for instance, one of military ports during the German colonial era in East Africa, was built in 1889, to serve local economy, particularly sisal, brought to the colony -- then Tanganyika, several years earlier.

The population in Tanga then grew rapidly. During the time, the town was also established as terminus for the then Usambara railway line – stretching from Tanga to Moshi. It earned the township status in April 1891.

For a few decades that followed, the Tanga port handled agricultural exports, mainly sisal fibre, loaded from most of Usambara railway line’s thirty two rail heads.

Other exports included robusta coffee from Moshi – on the slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro. Tea, grown on mountain slopes of Amani in Muheza district and in Korogwe district was another major commodity handled at the port.

But later, a decade or so ago, it was found out that congestion was evident at the port -- the reason being increase of volume of cargo, mainly imports.

The other reason was the fact that containerized traffic was going very fast and had been a preferred mode of traffic for most importers, compared to the past, when bulk transport was common place.

“We are embarking on an ambitious programme to expand the container stacking yard to meet the prevailing growing demand for handling containerized traffic,” according to Zachary Misso, former Tanga Port Master.

Under the programme, old warehouses structures presently not in use at the Tanga Port, will be demolished to pave way for extension of the port yard.

“Apart from the strategies to turn the stacking yard into a modern facility, plans are also on the drawing board to acquire a modest area within the port precincts,” said Misso.

Misso said in an exclusive, that the Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA) intended to request for a modest plot from the Tanga City Council (TCC), outside the port territory but within the port precincts for the port extension. He, however, assured Tanga residents that the exercise will involve minimal inconvenience to the community wherever the authority will be relocated.

The authority has acquired modern cranes whose handling capacity is 30 tonnes against 5 tons -- previously handled by the old cranes.

“The new cranes have substantially facilitated reduction of ship dwell time, hence better operations performance,” revealed a high ranking port official who opted for anominity.

“There are also plans to buy pontoons with carrying capacity of 600 tons against the present 200 tons.”

Tanga Port has vast potentials in the export business. These include the multi-billion Tanga Cement Company (TCC), situated about 12 kms from the city centre and the neighbouring Athi River Cement Company (ARCC, now under construction.

The two giant factories import clinker- a vital in gradient in the manufacture of cement and coal which is used for power generation.

A part from the anticipated expansion of the port, the government of Tanzania and Uganda are presently engaged in serious talks on the outstanding project of building an alternative port at Mwambani Bay – almost 5 kms from city centre.

Construction of the new port is essentially aimed at accommodating bigger ships, considering that it will have deeper berths, unlike the present facility where incoming ships anchore a few kilometres from the port.

Official reports have it that structural drawings for construction of the new port along with the Arusha – Musoma railway line have been in cupboards for over a decade.

According to plans on the drawing board, imports for landlocked Uganda would pass through the new Tanga port.

The containerized traffic, would then pass along the German built Tanga – Arusha railway line, onwards to Musoma where the cargo would be ferried by ship across Lake Victoria to an anticipated new port in Uganda-Ukasa.

From there, container loads would be marshalled on trains to Kampala- the country’s capital city. Consignments destined for other townships would then be dispatched further through Western Uganda extension railway line to Kasese, while others bound eastwards would pass through the Kampala-Tororo branch line.

Minister of Transport Omar Nundu recently told port stakeholders and Tanga residents at the Tanga railway station that there was presently urgent need to expedite the project in a bid to find alternative access to the sea by landlocked Uganda.

The minister had just disembarked from one of three motor trolleys on a convoy carrying UgandaTransport Minister, Abraham Byandala and officials from Uganda and Tanzania , including TPA Director General, Ephraim Mgawe.

Under the project, whose cost is estimated at 3 billion dollars - equivalent to 5trn/-, both Tanga and Musoma ports would be upgraded, according to Nundu who did not mention the sources of the project’s funding.

In the brief speech, Nundu called on Tanga residents to support government efforts to build the alternative port.

“At Musoma, people have offered 400 squire hectares of land for expansion of the present port, while in Uganda , there has been a pledge of 800 squire hectares towards construction of a new port of Ukasa ,” he revealed.

At Korogwe, he said, residents in the area have sacrificed 5.5 sq. hectares towards envisaged construction of a dry port.

However, Nundu hastened to say the government’s priority right now was construction of the Mwambani Bay Port as well as rehabilitation of the present port.

“We have vast land in Tanga, I know we will be discouraged in our efforts to build the Tanga-Musoma railway. But we wont be deterred,” said the minister, pledging that the project will be completed or reach advanced stage of development within the next five years.

On his part, Byandala was optimistic that Tanzanians will benefit from the project.

“This project will raise you from where you are now. It will not entertain politics whatsoever, but will centre purely on development,” he told the audience at the station.

He explained that later, Southern Sudan and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) will be involved in the project undertaking.

Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA) have already paid a colossal sum of 1.7 bn/- to Tanga City Council (TCC) as land compensation to be dished out to the people whose plots have been taken over by the authority.

INDIA: Jaypee Group to take over Andhra Cements

Kolkata: After many failed attempts, Kolkata-based GP Goenka group on Tuesday concluded a deal with Jaypee Development Corp. Ltd, a privately held unit of the Jaypee Group, to sell a controlling stake in Andhra Cements Ltd.

The Jaypee Group may have to pay as much as Rs280 crore if all transactions envisaged in Tuesday’s agreement eventually go through. If the mandatory open offer is fully subscribed, the Jaypee Group will get 80% of the firm’s shares. The deal will leave the GP Goenka group with a 6% stake in the company, on which the Jaypee Group will have right of first refusal.

The Economic Times newspaper had reported in its Mumbai edition on Friday that the Jaypee Group was close to buying Andhra Cements.

The deal was sewn up in “only eight days” of negotiations, according to G.P. Goenka, chairman of the eponymous group. “It was possible only because of the great degree of trust that (Jaypee Group chairman) Manoj (Gaur) and I have for each other.”

Lodha Capital Markets Ltd, an associate of audit firm Lodha and Co., advised Goenka on the stake sale.

File photo

This is the second deal between Goenka and Manoj Gaur in the space of a year. A year ago, Goenka concluded an agreement to transfer his group’s ailing fertilizer business, which was part of Duncans Industries Ltd, to a joint venture with the Jaypee Group.

“The (latest) deal is an extension of the relationship that we have built over the past two years, working together on reviving Duncans Industries’ fertilizer unit,” Gaur said.

Goenka and Gaur scrambled to close the Andhra Cements deal because there were others interested in the company. “With most of Goenka’s stake mortgaged with lenders, he didn’t want to wait for too long,” said an investment banker, who did not want to be named.

Companies that had lent to Andhra Cements, such as Infrastructure Development Finance Co. Ltd and Housing Development Finance Corp. Ltd, already own substantial stakes, currently 17.38% and 14.94%, respectively, in Andhra Cements.

The cement maker, which has an annual manufacturing capacity of 1.5 million tonnes (mt), will issue around 147.5 million new shares for Rs12 each, giving the Jaypee Group a 50.25% stake. Alongside this, Goenka will be selling 48.11 million shares from his total holding of 65.8 million shares for Rs12 apiece. He and his associates currently own 45.11% of the company’s shares.

The transactions will lead to the Jaypee Group making an open offer to acquire 26% more of Andhra Cements’ shares. In keeping with Indian takeover regulations, the open offer will be made on the current equity capital of the company, and not on the expanded one—post allotment of new shares. All three legs of the transaction will be executed simultaneously, according to Goenka.

Rumours of the deal triggered a sharp fall in the share prices of both Jaypee Group flagship Jaiprakash Associates Ltd (JAL) and Andhra Cements. The firm that acquired Andhra Cements, though, isn’t an arm of JAL.

JAL’s shares closed 5.84% lower on BSE at Rs70.20 apiece, while the Andhra Cements stock fell 4.3% to Rs10.46. Andhra Cements announced the deal after markets closed.

Though its operations are currently under suspension, Andhra Cements had initiated steps to expand capacity, and according to Goenka, production can be stepped up to 3.5 mt at an investment of Rs250 crore.

Some analysts say that scaling up capacity to this level could eventually cost up to Rs400 crore. Even so, the deal took place at an enterprise valuation of around $85 (Rs4,300) per tonne—a substantial discount to the cost of setting up a new plant, which is $130-135 per tonne. Andhra Cements has outstanding debt of at least Rs500 crore, of which Rs400 crore is secured, or obtained against mortgage of assets.

“It appeared to be a value-for-money proposition,” said Gaur. “We will waste no time in reviving the plant.”

The firm’s key asset is its substantial limestone deposits, estimated at around 300 mt.

The Andhra Cements deal brings to an end the GP Goenka group’s ongoing restructuring and makes it debt-free, its chairman said. With unsecured loans given to the firm expected to be repaid in some time, the group will only have some working capital loans outstanding.

“Now we can look ahead,” Goenka said.