(AFP Photo)
The armed forces’ Al-Arish cement factory is constructing a new cement production line to be completed by the end of 2015, head of the construction materials department at the Cairo Chamber of Commerce Ahmed El-Zeiny said on Tuesday.
“This is an attempt to fight the monopoly imposed by foreign cement facilities that sell cement at higher prices than the international standards,” El-Zeiny said. “Cement companies sell the tonne of cement for some EGP 450, $40 higher than the international price”.
The price for a tonne of cement produced by Al-Arish Cement factory is sold for EGP 550, El-Zeiny noted.
After its completion, the production line will help bring the quantity of cement produced to 7m tonnes per year from 3.5m tonnes per year.
“In two years, the facility has registered over EGP 1bn in revenues,” El-Zeiny added, explaining that the factory’s production is planned six months in advance.
El-Zeiny stated that constructing the production line will probably cost between EGP 700m and EGP 800m.
El-Zeiny said that cement prices have increased by 50% during the past three years. He stated that this led to a 10% to 20% increase in the prices of properties.
