Africa & The Middle East

The Egyptian company, which owns ASEC Cement, reports increased revenue and EBITDA and improved losses.

A round-up of some of this week’s key news items from the international cement industry, from the latest development to recent production, demand and supply figures.

The new CEO’s primary objective was to transform a well-known project oriented house into a customer oriented product house.

The Qalaa Holdings Scholarship Foundation announces ninth annual class of scholarship recipients.

Ibrahim Ismail, Hesham E. Abdel Hafiez, Asmaa S. Hamouda and Ahmed Soliman offer a detailed review of Egypt’s energy crisis, as well as potential solutions to overcome it.

Cheap cement imports are causing problems in South Africa, Ghana and even Pakistan.

Ohorongo Cement has made a donation to three regions of Namibia as part of its Silver Jubilee Independence Celebrations.

Cemex has placed itself as a leading user of alternative fuels in the cement industry.

East African Portland Cement Company is partnering with the Kenya Alliance of Resident Associations to launch a forum to help prevent shoddy construction.

Dangote Group, Nigeria, has commissioned a new cement plant in Ethiopia. It represents an investment of approximately N.94.5 billion (US$480 million) and is located in the Mugher district.

Cemex, the International Union for the Conservative nature (IUCN), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), and the WILD foundation join to promote protection of natural sites.

African Natural Resources Center (ANRC) seek comments and recommendations from stakeholders in order to better advise African countries on how to effectively utilise natural resources.

Operational results were good for the Egyptian company, which increased capacity utilisation and sales volumes in the January – March quarter, but net profits fell due to higher costs.

The African Development Bank initiative aims to identify key areas of intervention in order to provide better assistance in the management of renewable and non-renewable natural resources.

At the recent AGM in Lagos, shareholders approved a dividend of 360 kobo per ordinary share, a 9% increase from the 2013 dividend.