Suez Cement set to relocate plants and increase total output

Suez Cement, Egypt, has revealed plans to relocate a selection of its production lines to a new, energy-efficient location east of Cairo. The relocation project has been estimated to cost EGP 3 billion.

Two plants located in Cairo, part-owned by Helwan Cement and Tourah Cement, with Suez holding the majority stake in each, should be moved once the government has delivered its approval for construction to take place at the new site near Suez’s main factory.

Increasing capacity
Suez Cement is also considering the purchase of another producer, or bidding for a new licence. Roberto Callieri, Managing Director of Suez Cement, expressed the company’s intentions; ‘retaining your competitive edge means maintaining your size in a growing market. We are and will continue looking at plans to consolidate our position in the market because this market will continue to grow…Our old technology lines are still operating in an inefficient and energy-intensive process. These production units should be closed and relocated with the same installed capacity somewhere else.’

The Helwan and Tourah facilities have a combined capacity of 7.5 million tpa, while Suez Cement’s total capacity is in the region of 12.5 million tpa. Although no specific details were disclosed, Callieri revealed that the company planned to finance the relocation project itself.

Read the article online at: https://www.worldcement.com/africa-middle-east/05032010/suez_cement_set_to_relocate_plants_and_increase_total_output/