According to reports, Saudi Arabia is set to spend US$30 billion on cement over the next two years as mega government construction projects are underway. The GCC region spend on cement will exceed US$49 billion over that time, with the UAE trailing Saudi Arabia as the second biggest spender at US$4 billion.
The projects in Saudi include expansions of airports, mosques, metro and highways, where cement is the major building material. This will significantly boost cement demand, though this is then likely to normalise after the projects have been completed in about five years time. Cement consumption has grown considerably over the past decade, from 16 million t in 2000 to more than 48 million t by 2011. Analysts have predicted that cement sales will grow 8.2% this year to 56 million t, with a CAGR of 6.3% up to 2015.
While demand has been high, supply has been a problem for the Kingdom, which earlier this year issued a royal decree for the import of 10 million t of cement. Last month we reported that soaring demand was driving up cement and steel prices, causing concern amongst the construction industry that some companies would try to take advantage of the situation and disproportionately increase prices.
Edited from various sources by Katherine Guenioui