Northern European cement markets well placed for recovery

Published by Jonathan Rowland, Editor
World Cement, Thursday, 31 May 2018 09:00

Most markets in northern Europe are well placed to benefit from the current steady recovery in cement demand in the region, according to a new short regional report from Cement Business Research, a boutique consultancy focused on the global cement sector.

“The report identifies an overall utilisation rate for the region of around 75%,” Dom Pavlopoulos of Cement Business Research told World Cement. “Most markets in the region - except for Germany - are well structured and are in an advantageous position to benefit from the cyclical recovery experienced in the region.”

Germany is highly fragmented with 15 companies owning 33 integrated plants and 16 grinding plants with a total milling capacity of approximately 44 million tpy. However, they manage to have a reasonable utilisation rate by exporting significant volumes (around 15% of total capacity).

The region has a total nameplate milling capacity of around 100 million tpy. The regional report covers Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Poland and Sweden.

Growth in 2018 was expected to be good following a bumper year in 2017; however bad weather and various other macroeconomic events (Italy, US trade situation among others) have meant that growth for 2018 is likely to be subdued.

Read the article online at: https://www.worldcement.com/europe-cis/31052018/northern-european-cement-markets-well-placed-for-recovery/

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