Lafarge’s Bruno Lafont announces plans to invest in Brazilian cement industry

According to local media, Lafarge Chairman and CEO Bruno Lafont has announced that the company will invest R$1 billion in Brazil over the next 5 years. The statement follows a meeting with Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff on Friday. The investment will include a new research centre that would carry out field tests on solutions within the construction sector. The centre will be the fifth to be established outside of France, although it is not yet known where it will be built within the country.

Lafarge’s financial results for 2Q12 saw EBITDA rise by 13% y/y in Latin America, and by 26% y/y in 3Q12. The cement industry in Brazil has been experiencing growth, spurred on by construction ahead of the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup and 2014 FIFA World Cup. In November 2012, total cement sales in the country reached 5.8 million t, up 3.8% y/y. In the first 11 months of the year, sales volumes increased by 7.6% y/y to 63.2 million t.

Edited from various sources by Louise Fordham.

Read the article online at: https://www.worldcement.com/the-americas/17012013/cement_lafarge_brazil_investment_construction_research_22/