info.afrindex.com
China-Africa Trade Information Service
info.afrindex.com
China-Africa Trade Information Service
Photo from Internet
Zimbabwe's cement industry could run out of capacity by 2020 as national demand grows faster than the supply, one of the major producers has said.
The industry is dominated by three major players, namely PPC Zimbabwe, Lafarge Cement Zimbabwe and Sino-Zimbabwe Cement. Together, they have a combined installed capacity of 2,4 million metric tonnes of cement, 54% more than current demand estimated at 1,3 million tonnes.
Addressing delegates at the Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries annual congress held in Bulawayo last week, Lafarge Cement Zimbabwe commercial director Edith Matekaire called for new investments in production capacity to forestall shortages, given the time taken to develop new plants.
“We know we talk about all the macroeconomic issues like the cost of energy and cost of labour, but I want to say that beyond 2020, we will begin to run out of capacity as an industry, and I have no doubt that it is time to act now,” Matekaire said.
“We can see that our projections are in real demand. We will need an additional capacity, and today I must say as Lafarge we have a greenlight on new investment, but the issue has always been how do you fund that investment in terms of paying back.
