Leading regional cement producer ASEC Cement announced today that it has launched operations at ASEC Ready Mix, which will have points of presence in the significantly under-served Upper Egyptian cities of Minya, Assiut and Qena.
ASEC Ready Mix is a joint-venture between ASEC Cement, a Portfolio Company of Citadel Capital's ASEC Holding, and Misr Qena Cement. It has an annual production capacity of more than 200,000 cubic meters of concrete.
"This EGP 43 million project is an outstanding partnership with Misr Qena that will create some 100 new jobs in Upper Egypt while supplying high-quality ready mix concrete to a market in significant deficit, giving us an important first-mover advantage," said ASEC Cement Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Giorgio Bodo.
While smaller construction operations typically mix concrete on-site from cement, sand, aggregates and water, ready mix concrete is created off-site and delivered in large quantities to construction venues. Mixed by specialists, ready mix product may be sold from a standard recipe or custom-tailored to the needs of an individual contractor, allowing for more aggregate or special curatives to be added, for example.
ASEC Cement owns 55% of the new venture, while Misr Qena Cement owns the balance.
"The market opportunity in Upper Egypt is substantial, not just because it has long been under-served, but also due to the rapid growth in both public and private spending on infrastructure, real-estate and other concrete-intensive projects," Bodo added.
ASEC Ready Mix will also contribute to vertical integration at ASEC Cement's under-construction 1.7 million tons per annum greenfield cement plant in Minya.
Production at the Minya plant begins this month, while Qena will follow in early June. Operations will begin at the Assiut plant soon afterward. Each station can produce up to 110 cubic meters of ready mix per hour of operations.
ASEC Cement owns a 27.55% stake in Misr Qena Cement.