afrol News, 29 March - A new cement production line is now to be constructed in Bouskoura, close to Morocco's economic capital, Casablanca. Morocco, which is one of the region's major cement producers, thus is to increase its cement capacity by almost one million tonnes annually.

The Paris-based multinational Lafarge today announced that its Casablanca-based 50 percent subsidiary Lafarge Ciments has decided to build a new production line in Bouskoura, Morocco, to increase the cement capacity by over 900,000 tonnes.

- This investment will significantly reinforce the plant's profitability, Lafarge said in a release. "The production is scheduled to start at the beginning of 2006. The project is expected to create value quickly, due to market growth," the company added.

Lafarge Ciments is a 50 percent subsidiary of Lafarge, held in partnership with Morocco's Société Nationale d'Investissement (SNI). The Franco-Moroccan company already has four cement plants in Bouskoura, Tangiers, Meknes and Tetouan, and a total capacity of 4.2 million tonnes.

This is before the increase in capacity of the Bouskoura plant, which will give Lafarge Ciments a production capacity of over 5 million tonnes. In 2003, Lafarge Ciments posted sales of 275.3 million euros and a consolidated income of 106.5 million euros, increasing by 12.5 percent and 18.5 percent respectively, compared with 2002, according to the company.

- Together with the successful start of our new cement plant in Tetouan, the increase of capacity in Bouskoura will enable us to pursue our development with very good returns in this fast-growing market, commented today Bernard Kasriel, CEO of Lafarge (Paris). "This is perfectly consistent with Lafarge's long-term business strategy, particularly directed towards growing markets," added Mr Kasriel.

Semi-industrialised Morocco is turning into one of the major cement producers in the Middle East and in Africa. Several multinationals operate cement plants in Morocco, although most are controlled by French and/or Moroccan capital.

In addition to Lafarge, which last year was ranked the number one cement manufacturer worldwide, Ciments du Maroc is a large player on the Moroccan market. Casablanca-based Ciments du Maroc, which is controlled by the Paris based Ciments Francais, operates several plants in Morocco. Also the Rabat-based Holcim Maroc, owned by Swiss capital, is a major cement and concrete producer in Morocco.

Morocco produces an approximate total of 10 million tons of cement annually, which is an estimated 10 percent more than consumed by domestic industries. Current tendencies in the Moroccan construction sector have led national statisticians to estimate Moroccan cement needs to reach 15 million tons by 2015.

By staff writer

© afrol News

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