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$2.2 Million Dry Mortar Mix Plant: To be Commission by Zimbabwe’s Lafarge Cement before the rollout of 2020
Posted On 01 Oct 2020
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By Abdul Rahman Bangura–
NEW AFRICA DAILY NEWS (NADN) Freetown, Sierra Leone- Zimbabwe’s Lafarge Cement (Lafarge), is fixed to finalize the installation of a $2.2 million Dry Mortar Mix (DMX) plant during next slice of 2020 as the cement-maker bent on in bolstering its production capacity, 263 Chat Business has ascertained. Thus, the project is fraction of Lafarge Holcim Group’s $25 million recapitalization of its Zimbabwean subsidiary that was disclosed in 2019.
“Currently, the DMX plant is being installed and is set to be completed in the second half of 2020, while the Vertical Cement Mill supply contract was signed in August 2020,” said the Group’s Chairman – Kumbirai Katsande.
Moreover, Lafarge has been manufacturing DMX products for many years although on a small scale and the new plant once finished off, is anticipated to enhance the company’s manufacturing capacity per year by over 700% from the current 7,000 tones to 50,000 tones. On the same vein, The DMX product range comprises tile adhesives, agricultural lime, tile gout, cement based paints and water proofing compound.
Nonetheless, fresh volumes for the DMX business thrived by 100% in the corporation’s half-year performance to June 30th, 2020 though the corporation foresees a decline in the second half of the year due to the planned plant shutdown for renovations.
“Revenue for the six months grew by 27% to ZWL 1.1 billion (June 2019: ZWL 0.9 billion). Our cost rationalization, innovation, and efficiency initiatives helped to improve gross profit margins by 8% to 50% (June 2019: 42%),” announced Katsande.
The corporation commenced the year on a fair remark with first first-quarters marginally exceeding the same preceding comparable duration by 1.4% before the onslaught of the COVID-19 lockdown which resulted in a crucial plunge in the monthly volumes of April 2020 by 71.4% correlated to the same month in the prior year. The volumes yet, recovered in May and June 2020, leading to total volumes for the period closing at 14.1% downward than the same period in 2019.
For New Africa Daily News Abdul Rahman Bangura Reports, Africa Correspondent
www.newafricadailynews.com
