Beirut (APD)- Senior officials at the Syria headquartered Arab Union for Cement and Building Materials (AUCBM) expect the cement production in Arab countries to grow by 50% and investments in the sector to surge by 57% over the course of three years, the Saudi-based Al Iqtisadiya reported Wednesday.
"Driven by increasing demand in the real estate sector, we expect cement production in Arab countries to reach 260 million tons while consumption would climb to 121 million tons," Ahmad Al Rousan, secretary general of the AUCBM, said Tuesday in a press statement.
Arab countries currently have an annual production capacity of 140 million tons, representing 7% of total worldwide production.
Rousan added that most cement factories in the region are less than 25 years old. However, plants in Syria, Egypt and Morocco are up to 77 years old.
"Cement production in GCC states is expected to grow to 80 million tons, up from 38 million tons," announced Hassan Rateb, vice president of AUCBM.
Rateb, who is also the chairman of Egypt's Sinai Cement Company, said that he expects Egypt's annual cement production to increase to 60 million tons in three years, up from a current production of 35 million tons.
"The Egyptian market is saturated with 25 million tons the remaining 10 million are being exported for regional consumption," he added.
AUCBM studies show that investments in the cement sector are forecasted to increase by 57% to $55 billion in the coming few years, up from $35 billion spent by now.
In terms of prices, Rateb claimed that Egypt has the region's lowest cement prices with each ton sold between $55 and $60. The private sector operates up to 40% of the cement companies in Egypt.
"Cement is sold for $140 per ton in Syria and for $180 in Sudan," Rateb added.
Both Rateb and Rousan called for more commercial trade among Arab countries to avoid losses in the booming cement sector. [TS]
By Mirna Sleiman, APD Staff Writer in Beirut
© APD (Arab Press Digest) 2006
