The rising demand of construction and resurgent real estate in recent times has helped the cement sector flourish, insiders have said.
The domestic demand for cement has been surging from 5.0 per cent to 8.0 per cent over the last three to four years, boosted by industrial and construction sectors, they said.
"We are noticing a rising demand for cement in domestic market, which has kept our industry at a comfortable level," Secretary of Bangladesh Cement Manufacturers Association Sheikh Ashraf told the FE.
Mr Ashraf said most of the cement companies are doing well, thanks to the growing demand and that companies are also going to get more good days sooner, despite a competitive market.
"We expect that within three to four years, the growth of the demand will be more than 20 per cent as the government has undertaken a large number of mega projects along with the rapid industrialisation and turnaround of the country's real estate sector," he added.
He said the sector also can reach another milestone if the plan to build roads is approved by the government.
"The approval for road construction by cement proposal is under process. The government is conducting a feasibility study on the proposal and we are very much optimistic about its acceptance," he said.
After acceptance of the proposal, most of the roads of the country will be constructed by cement, which will create a new era for the country's cement industry," he added.
About export market, he said local companies export to only seven states of the eastern regions of India.
Over the last three to four years, they have exported around 800,000 to one million tonnes of cement per year.
"Our member companies are also working to unlock the export potentials of lucrative Asian and EU markets," Mr. Ashraf added.
However, Mr Ashraf said the local companies were well-positioned to meet the growing demand as the production capacity of the companies was around three times the requirement.
Mr. Ashraf said now demand for cement is around 18 million (1 crore 80 lac) tones, where the production capacity of the companies is around 35 million tonnes.
He said there are 46 cement manufacturing companies in Bangladesh, of which 30 companies are the members of Bangladesh Cement Manufacturers Association. Most of the companies produce 'quality' cement meeting international standard.
Price has also kept pace, with products of multinational brands such as Holcim, Lafarage and Heidelberg are selling at Tk 470 to Tk 480 per bag, which was Tk 350 three years ago.
On the other hand, price of local brands is Tk 405-Tk 425 per bag, which was around Tk 300 per bag three years ago.
Asked about the increased price, Sheikh Ashraf said the government increased the rate of import duty on the raw materials. Now, the companies need to pay Tk 500 per tonne to import clinker, which was Tk 200 per tonne three years ago.
© 2024 - All Rights with The Financial Express
