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Displaying items by tag: market
Kitaseki Concrete to transfer manufacturing of secondary concrete products to Matsuzaka Kosan
25 July 2024Japan: Vertex Corporation subsidiary Kitaseki Concrete plans to transfer its secondary concrete product manufacturing operations from Annaka in Gunma Prefecture to Matsuzaka Kosan in Mie Prefecture. Nikkei News has reported that the move aims to increase efficiency and raise competitiveness in response to the evolving industry environment.
Symmetrica raises revenues in first half of 2024
17 July 2024Romania: Concrete paving slab producer Symmetrica's sales grew by 40% to €30.2m in the first half of 2024, driven by strong demand for road and water infrastructure projects. Sales volumes also grew, by 30%, to 2.7Mm2. The producer noted high costs, which it partly offset by raising its prices. It also faced collection issues and a decline in residential demand.
SeeNews has reported that Symmetrica is currently building a new €48m concrete paving slab plant Bucharest. When commissioned in mid-late 2024, it will be the largest plant of its kind in the region.
US: Cemex USA has entered into a joint venture for the production and distribution of aggregates in the Mid-South region with Couch Aggregates and Premier Holdings. Cemex USA has a pre-existing strategic partnership with Couch Aggregates. The group says that the vertical integration of this, along with Premier Holdings’ Gulf Coast marine terminals, will accelerate its regional growth. Cemex aims to raise the total US contribution to its earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) from 29% to 40% in the ‘medium-term’ future.
President Jaime Muguiro said "This joint venture will create significant opportunities for both parties by utilising vertical integration and leveraging each other's capabilities for growth. We remain committed to increasing our capacity to serve the US market with more sustainable and innovative solutions."
Cemex USA’s Mid-South region covers 27 ready-mix concrete plants in Alabama, 24 in Georgia, 11 in Tennessee and one in Virginia, and aggregates sites in Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina.
Al-Kifah Precast discusses regional growth plans
10 July 2024Saudi Arabia: Al-Kifah Precast says that it is preparing to expand into other Middle Eastern countries, having more than tripled its sales since 2020. CEO Ehab Abu Salim says that the producer was a strategic supplier of precast concrete for Red Sea Global’s Red Sea Project in Tabuk Province, and now aims to support other major projects like the Neom new city and Amaala resort, also in Tabuk Province. Gulf Construction News has reported that the company has invested in research and development to establish best practices, as in its partnership with a UK-based company to produce marine concrete elements. It has reduced its CO2 emissions through the use of alternative materials such as fibreglass, steel rebar and pozzolans.
Abu Salim said “Having a facility in the Red Sea Project was a strategic move. The plant produces all types of precast elements and we are also looking to improve the facility. We have an expansion planned; very soon it will be serving the entire region." He added “Precast technology helps to speed up projects, is more sustainable, offers higher quality, and the price is on par and sometimes even lower than using traditional construction solutions.”
Romania: IBB Holding inaugurated a new €1.5m ready-mix concrete batching plant in Mogoșoaia, Bucharest. Money News has reported that the plant is the company’s fourth.
CEO Ion Crăciunescu said "Through this new concrete plant located in the north of Bucharest, we are in a favourable position to participate in tenders for infrastructure projects in this area and establish strategic partnerships with real estate developers. Moreover, we can ensure the quality of the materials used, faster and more efficient services. Our strategy is to offer services integrated with production, with responsibility towards the environment and towards future generations, adapted to each type of project in which we are involved: infrastructure, residential, commercial or industrial construction. The real need that Romania has both in terms of investments in infrastructure and in the housing fund, as well as the projects already started, leads us to look optimistically at the development of our businesses in the medium and long term."
World: Investment firm Insight Partners has forecast a composite annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.3% in the global green cement and concrete market between 2023 and 2030. This will result in a total value of US$990m in 2030, compared to US$806m in 2023. Regionally, the firm expects the sharpest growth in South and Central America, with a CAGR of 10% to US$7.9m in 2030. North America is expected to grow at a rate of 5.4% annually, to US$190m, followed by Europe, at 4.5% to US$226m, Middle East and Africa, at 2.9% to US$13m, and Asia-Pacific, at 1.4% to US$553m. In 2023, Asia-Pacific commanded a 61% share of the global market. Europe’s share was 20% and that of North America was 16%.
US: Global Cement understands from material published publicly on Breedon Group’s website that the UK-based company acquired ready-mix concrete, aggregates and building products company BMC Enterprises for US$300m on 6 March 2023. This marks the group’s first entry into the US building materials sector. Breedon Group described the acquisition as a ‘compelling opportunity’ in the ‘fragmented and growing’ market. It described BMC Enterprises as a highly attractive, established business upon which to grow a new group platform in the US, in addition to its existing platforms in the UK and Ireland.
Breedon Group CEO Rob Wood said “The acquisition of BMC represents a compelling opportunity for Breedon to launch our third platform. BMC has an excellent performance track record over a sustained period and is positioned in an attractive market for future growth. As a high-quality aggregates and concrete business that has grown at pace, organically and through acquisitions, with a strong management team and deep local knowledge, BMC’s culture and values are fully aligned with the Breedon business model.” Wood added "The acquisition is expected to be earnings-enhancing for shareholders, while allowing Breedon to maintain a conservative and flexible balance sheet to pay dividends and make further bolt-on acquisitions across each of our platforms as opportunities arise.”
Nuvoco Vistas inaugurates second ready-mix concrete batching plant
23 February 2024India: Nuvoco Vistas has inaugurated its second ready-mix concrete plant, at Ranipur Milki Chak in Bihar’s Patna District. The producer said that the plant, called Patna-II, is strategically positioned for access both to local cement plants and the urban concrete market of Patna. The plant commands 60m3/hr of capacity and is equipped with a twin shaft mixer capable of producing all grades of concrete. Its products include Nuvoco Vistas’ XCON, CONCRETO, Light Weight Concrete, Fibre Enriched Concrete, High Strength Concrete, Water and Crack Resistant Concrete, Foundation Expert Concrete, ECODURE Green Concrete, ARTISTE Decorative Concrete Floors, and INSTAMIX Ready-to-Use Bagged Concrete.
Chief of the ready-mix concrete and modern building materials Prashant Jha said "The launch of the Patna-II plant underscores Nuvoco's dedication to providing innovative solutions to meet the evolving needs of the construction industry in Bihar. This new facility will not only strengthen our presence in the region but also enable us to serve our customers more efficiently."
US: Martin Marietta Materials has signed a deal to buy 20 aggregates operations in the Southeast US from Blue Water Industries for US$2.05bn. Reuters has reported that the partners expect to close the deal later in 2024. Martin Marietta Materials says that the acquisitions will help it to meet rising national demand for building materials. The North Carolina-based group operates aggregates sites in 28 US states, Canada and the Bahamas.
Martin Marietta Materials previously indicated that recent divestitures in its ready-mix concrete business and other areas would help it to ‘redeploy the proceeds into pure-play aggregates acquisitions.’
Polish Office of Competition and Consumer Protection approves Lafarge Polska’s acquisition of some Eurobud Chajewscy assets
05 February 2024Poland: The Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKK) has conditionally approved Lafarge Polska's acquisition of certain assets of Eurobud Chajewscy. A condition for the approval is that Lafarge Polska sell the Piła concrete plant in Greater Poland. Baltic Legal Updates News has reported that this would enable Lafarge Polska to retain a single concrete plant in the city.
The UOKK said "Concentration in the proposed form would mean the lack of free choice of supplier and the risk of price increases for concrete buyers in Piła. The sale of one of the concrete plants in Piła will allow entrepreneurs to maintain fair competition on the local concrete supply market."