The countries of southern Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland and Zimbabwe, are of varying sizes and levels of economic development. The total annual cement production capacity of these countries has reached 23.3 million tons. The economic development level of each country is also directly proportional to the development level of its cement industry. Next, let's take a look at the cement market in various countries.
Figure 1: The only small integrated cement plant in Botswana, operated by Matsiloje Portland Cement
Botswana has been one of the most politically stable countries in Africa since gaining independence from Britain in 1966. Political stability has also led to steady economic growth. Botswana is also at the top of the list of southern African countries in terms of per capita GDP. Since the 21st century, the per capita GDP has more than doubled. Among them, the average economic growth rate from 2004 to 2007 reached 5.5%.
Economic development is mainly dependent on the mining of mineral resources, especially diamonds, but this trend is gradually shifting to the financial industry, services and tourism. However, over-reliance on diamond resources, high HIV infection rate (the second highest in the world), high unemployment rate (about 20%) and unbalanced regional development also threaten the country's economic development.
Cement industry .
There are two cement plants in the country: an integrated cement plant and a grinding station. The cement complex, Matsiloje Portland Cement, is operated by the local Nortex Management Services company. The annual cement production capacity is 36000 tons, supplying 32.5 tons of cement to the local cement market.
When Nortex took over in 2006, it invested $4.4 million to transform it into a modern standard cement plant, and did not restart cement production until 2009.
The grinding station is operated by PPC Botswana, a South African company, which produces bulk cement locally with an annual capacity of 400,000 tons. The history of the grinding station dates back to the 1980s. At that time, PPC and the Botswana Development Corporation (Botswana Development Corportation, BDC) wanted to build an integrated cement plant near the limestone reserves in Naka-la-Phala district. However, the final results of the investigation showed that the limestone reserve could not support the development of the adjacent cement plant in the long run. So the two partners decided to build a grinding station near the capital, Gaborone. The construction of the grinding station was officially started in 1994, and the cement sales business was started in 1996. Twenty years later, this grinding station is still the largest cement production base in Botswana.
Due to the lack of domestic cement production capacity, cement and clinker mainly depend on imports from local cement producers with poor sales in South Africa, of which about half of the imports come from PPC. PPC will also supply the grinding station in Gaborone with clinker from the nearest South African cement plant.
Under the close connection between Botswana and South Africa cement market, the cement prices of the two countries are basically at the same level. At present, the price of cement in Botswana is 125 US dollars per ton.
In fact, there has been a plan to build a large-scale comprehensive cement plant in China for a long time. PPC/Botswana Development Corporation wants to build the largest integrated cement plant in the country at Naka-la-Phala. The government is also trying to reduce the country's dependence on cement imports and diamond exports. Therefore, it is only a matter of time for Botswana, a country with rapid economic development, to achieve rapid development of cement industry by virtue of its abundant mineral resources, especially coal resources.
Table 1: GDP per capita in Botswana, 2000-2013
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I. Botswana
Photo 2: Lesotho surrounded by mountains
II. Lesotho
Lesotho is located in the inland area, because it is surrounded by South Africa, so it is called "China". After breaking away from British rule in 1966, the country has been in a long-term political turmoil and the economy has been in a state of underdevelopment.
The main target of trade is South Africa, from which about 80% of domestic food is imported. Due to the continuing high unemployment rate in the country, most Lesotho people rely on employment in South Africa to support their families at home.
Cement industry .
At present, there is no cement plant in China, and the demand for cement is mainly met by imports from South Africa. The annual consumption of cement in China is 200,000 tons, and the annual consumption of cement per capita is 95 kg (the total population is about 2.1 million).
In October 2013, the Lesotho National Development Corporation announced that it planned to invest US $36 million to build a cement plant with an annual capacity of 200,000 tons in the country to meet the cement demand for the construction of the Lesotho Highland Water Conservancy Project (LHWP). After the completion of the project, the cement plant will mainly supply the domestic cement market, and domestic cement demand will no longer need to rely on imports from South Africa. The abundant cement raw materials in China, clay and sand reserves, have also created inherent advantages for the operation of cement plants. But unfortunately, after the announcement of the construction, there is no information about the construction progress of the cement plant.
However, it is likely that PPC has also invested in the cement plant, which is in line with its plans to expand capacity in Africa. Indeed, 80% of foreign investment in Lesotho comes from South Africa. Another possibility is that Chinese investors may also have invested in the cement plant, as there is a precedent in Zimbabwe, Africa.
Table 2: GDP per capita in Lesotho, 2000-2013
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Figure 3: Integrated cement plant under construction by Consolidated General Materials in Beira, Mozambique
III. Mozambique
In 1975, Mozambique became independent from the Portuguese colony. Due to severe drought, government mismanagement and a long civil war, the domestic economy did not develop until the mid-1990s. During this period, the domestic economic and trade development mainly depended on South Africa.
After the establishment of the multi-party electoral system in 1994, the domestic economy has developed rapidly, and has rapidly entered the forefront of the international development level. Over the past decade (up to 2013), Mozambique has achieved an average annual economic growth rate of 6 to 8%, making it one of the fastest growing countries in Africa.
The Mozambican government is also expected to take advantage of the country's rich mineral resources to attract more international investors to develop the domestic economy. However, political unrest, increased protests against rising food and fuel prices, high unemployment (17%) and high poverty (up to 50%) remain threats to economic development.
Cement industry .
There are two comprehensive cement plants with many grinding stations in China. There are also many cement plants and grinding stations under preparation or construction. At present, the largest cement producer in the country is IterCement (owned by Camargo Corr Corrêa Group of Brazil). IterCement's official website lists a total annual cement production capacity of 2.9 million tons, but surveys show that its actual total annual production capacity in Mozambique is only 2.11 million tons. The other is Cimentos Nacional (part of Brazil's Cimentos Brennand Group). One of Austral Cimentos' grinding stations also entered the commissioning phase in mid-2014, with large-scale production starting in 2015. PPC Mozambique, China-Mozambique Cement & Mining and Consolidated General Materials all have cement plants under construction or planned in Mozambique.
In recent years, the cement industry in Mozambique has achieved rapid development. Cement and clinker sales increased by 13.7% in 2010 and by 9.8% in 2013 at Cimentos de Mo çambique (Cimentos de Mozambique). Over the years, Mozambique's cement production capacity has grown rapidly. The operation of these cement plants under construction and preparation will rapidly increase the total annual cement production capacity from 2.66 million tons to 5.5 million tons.
Insitec, Cimentos de Mo çambique's shareholder, said that the domestic cement market would continue to grow. Cement demand will grow to 1.5 million tons in 2014 and exceed 1.8 million tons in 2018. Despite the fact that the economy grew by 7% in 2013, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said that Mozambique's economy would grow by 8.5% in 2015. The cement market in Mozambique will attract more people to invest.
Table 3: GDP per capita (blue line) and cement production (green line) in Mozambique, 2000-2012/13
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Figure 4: Ohorongo Cement Plant
IV. Namibia
Namibia, located in southwestern Africa, was once a German colony. In the first half of the 20th century, Namibia was under the rule of South Africa until 1990. It was the last colony in the world to gain independence from South Africa.
The level of economic development in Namibia has doubled since the 21st century. During the early to mid-2000s, the country's economic development was based on the export of mineral products, especially diamonds. But demand for minerals fell in 2014, even though the country is rich in copper, oil and uranium. A wide gap between rich and poor, even wider than in neighbouring South Africa, still threatens the country's development.
Cement industry .
From 2000 to 2010, Namibia's cement demand (about 320,000 to 340,000 tons per year) was basically met by imports from countries with excess cement capacity such as South Africa.
But that changed in 2011 when Namibia's first cement plant, the Ohorongo Cement Plant, went into operation. Germany's Schwenk Zement has a 70% stake in Ohorongo Cement, while the Development Bank of Namibia, the Development Bank of South Africa and the Industrial Development Corporation have a 30% stake.
In 2007, at the invitation of Namibian investors, Schwenk Zement established Ohorongo Cement Company, which was contracted by Polysius in the northern town of Otavi in early 2008, with a total investment of 227 million US dollars. The first batch of cement was produced in early 2011, and by April 2013, the total cement production capacity reached 1 million tons.
Since the planning and construction of the Ohorongo Cement Plant was carried out by a German cement producer and a leading cement plant builder, the plant is basically in conformity with European standards in all respects. Pollutant discharge standards are also in line with German standards. The Ohorongo Cement Plant is currently the most thermally efficient cement plant in Africa. Schwenk Zement built the cement plant into a combination of coal and biomass fuel capacity, using local experience with alternative fuels in Germany. In practice, the Ohorongo cement plant also regularly uses sloe, a rampant weed that threatens local crops, as fuel. The weed is capable of meeting 30% of its heat needs, and there are plans to extract 80% of its heat from sloes in the future.
The Ohorongo Cement Plant's main market is domestic, but it also exports about 100,000 tons of cement annually to Botswana, Zimbabwe and Zambia. Cement has not been exported to South Africa mainly because of the distance of cement plants from densely populated areas in South Africa and the fact that there is little demand for cement in the southern border area (South Africa in southern Namibia).
The main obstacle to the development of the Ohorongo cement plant is the ban on imports in Angola, which began in 2011. Angola's domestic demand for cement is mainly met by imports from China. But now Angola says it is self-sufficient in the domestic cement market. Ohorongo Cement Factory has also been asking the Namibian government to ban import of cement from abroad on the grounds of protecting the rights and interests of new industries in order to protect the development of domestic cement factories. But in the future, with the expansion of Dangote Cement's production capacity in Africa, Ohorongo Cement is likely to face the competitive pressure it brings.
Domestic cement has always had high sales in Namibia. The raw materials needed for cement production can also be self-sufficient. In addition, in July 2012, Ohorongo Cement entered into a contract for the supply of cement for the construction of St Helena Airport overseas in the United Kingdom, which provided an opportunity for Ohorongo Cement to expand into overseas markets. The project will be completed in 2016.
Table 4: GDP per capita (blue line) and cement production (green line) in Namibia from 2000 to 2013/2013
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Photo 5: Cape Town Scene
V. South Africa
Located at the southernmost tip of the African continent, South Africa is known as the "Rainbow Nation". Its economic development ranks in the forefront of African countries, its financial, legal, communications, energy and transportation industries are well developed, it has a complete hardware infrastructure and stock exchange market, and its gold and diamond production ranks first in the world. Deep mining and other technologies are in the leading position in the world. But an unbalanced economy, a wide gap between the rich and the poor, and a high crime rate (one of the highest in the world) still threaten the country's economic development.
Cement industry .
South Africa has the largest cement production capacity in southern Africa. There are 12 comprehensive cement plants and 6 grinding stations in China. The North West and Gauteng provinces, especially the western coastal areas of KwaZulu-Natal, are the main cement production bases. South Africa's total annual cement production capacity has reached more than 15.6 million tons.
PPC, South Africa's largest cement producer, has seven integrated cement plants in the country with an annual capacity of 4.75 million tons. Cement plants are mainly located in the North West region, with one being built in Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape. The second largest cement producer in South Africa is NPC (Natal Portland Cement, part of InterCement). It has an integrated cement plant with an annual capacity of 1.5 million tons in Shepstone Port, a grinding station with an annual capacity of 1.2 million tons in Durban and a grinding station with an annual capacity of 450,000 tons in Newcastle. NPC has a total annual cement production capacity of 3.15 million tons in South Africa. The third largest cement producer in South Africa is Afrisam, which has two integrated cement plants in the country with a total annual capacity of 2.05 million tonnes. The fourth largest cement producer is the recently established Lafarge Africa, which operates in South Africa and Nigeria. It has an integrated cement plant in the Lichtenberg area and a grinding station in Landfontein. Lafarge Africa has an annual cement production capacity of more than 2 million tons in South Africa.
South Africa also has two nascent cement producers, Sephaku Cement and Mamba Cement. Nigeria's Dangote Cement owns 64% of Sephaku Cement, and China's Jidong Cement is one of its shareholders. Dangote Cement's entry into the South African cement market is actually part of its plan to expand production capacity in Africa. Sephaku Cement has an integrated cement plant with an annual capacity of 1.25 million tons in Lichtenberg and a grinding station with an annual capacity of 1.4 million tons in Delmas. Mamba Cement is currently building an integrated cement plant in the Northam area of Limpopo Province.
Total domestic cement sales in South Africa reached 12.2 million tons in 2013, up 5.3% from 11.6 million tons in 2012. South Africa's annual cement production capacity has reached more than 15.6 million tons, with a utilization rate of about 78%. Cement imports in 2013 increased by 44% to 1.1 million tons from 750,000 tons in 2012.
From the above, it can be seen that South Africa has a promising future for cement, but some people are worried about the current situation of the cement industry in South Africa, which is in a difficult period in the short and medium term. In April 2014, Gavin Wood, chief investment officer of Kagiso Asset Management Asset Management, said that "as South African cement producers struggle to divide up the market, their profits are also threatened." The addition of Sephaku Cement and Mamba Cement will exacerbate the already severe market situation, and the profits of traditional producers will be more threatened.
In recent years, the South African cement industry has been debating whether to ban imports of Pakistani cement into the country. In August 2014, the South African authorities therefore launched an investigation into the entry of Pakistani cement into the domestic market. Cement companies, including Afrisam, Lafarge Africa, NPC and PPC, claim that Pakistan Cement's domestic price (about $55 per ton) is only about half of the domestic manufacturer's price (about $128 per ton), a discount of 57%.
However, it is worth noting that the cement market in South Africa may not be so optimistic. According to the International Monetary Fund, South Africa's economy is likely to grow by only 1.4% in 2014 and 2.3% in 2015 (recently revised down). The South African Reserve Bank also lowered the figure from 3.0% to 1.5%.
Table 5: GDP per capita (blue line) and cement production (green line) in South Africa, 2000-2012/13
VI. Swaziland
Swaziland gained independence from Britain in 1968. The landlocked African nation is also the last monarchy in existence.
The domestic economy is largely controlled by the neighboring power, South Africa. Up to 90% of imports come from South Africa, and 60% of exports go to South Africa. Swaziland's currency, the Lilangini, is even equivalent to South Africa's rand, which shows the close economic ties between the two countries. Because of the great difference in economic development, many Swazi people choose to work in South Africa to ensure the source of livelihood for their families at home. Seventy percent of the country's population depends on agriculture for its livelihood.
Cement industry .
Like Lesotho, Swaziland has no integrated cement plants and grinding stations. Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland have long relied on cement imports from South Africa, a nearby powerhouse, to meet their domestic demand.
Swaziland has many cement suppliers in South Africa. In 2012, PPC set up a Swaziland division to expand production capacity outside South Africa. At present, this department is mainly responsible for exporting cement produced by cement factories in Northwest South Africa to Swaziland. Afrisam has a similar unit in South Africa, delivering cement to the country via rail service, the Swaziland Railway.
At present, Swaziland's cement market prospects may not be optimistic enough, nor is it suitable to build cement plants or grinding stations. According to the International Monetary Fund, Swaziland's domestic economic growth is slow, with a growth rate of only 2.1% in 2014. Moreover, South Africa's cement producers can basically meet Swaziland's domestic demand for cement.
VII. Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe was a British colony until it gained independence in 1980. The country experienced severe hyperinflation until 2009, when it replaced its currency with the US dollar and the South African rand, and inflation began to stabilize. Industrial development ranks in the forefront of African countries, with manufacturing, agriculture and mining as the three pillars of the economy, rich in natural resources and a good industrial and agricultural foundation. However, low revenue, high debt and high unemployment remain the main obstacles to domestic economic development.
Cement industry .
There are four cement plants in China, with a total annual cement production capacity of 2.76 million tons. There are three major cement producers in China, namely, PPC Zimbabwe Company (a subsidiary of PPC), Lafarge Zimbabwe Company and Huajin Cement Plant (jointly invested by China Building Material Industry Corporation for Foreign Technical and Economic Cooperation and Zimbabwe Industrial Corporation).
PPC Zimbabwe is the largest cement producer in the region, with an annual production capacity of 760,000 tons. The two cement plants are located in Bulaweyo and Colleen Bawn. PPC is currently investing US $200 million in a new cement plant near the capital Harare, which is expected to have an annual production capacity of 1 million tons. The plant mainly supplies cement to the central cement market in Zimbabwe and Mozambique.
Lafarge Zimbabwe has only one cement plant in the country with an annual capacity of 500,000 tons, located in the Manresea area near the capital Harare. The plant, once owned by Blue Circle, was bought and operated by Lafarge in 2001.
Huajin Cement has an integrated cement plant with an annual capacity of 200,000 tons in Zimbabwe, located in Kweilu, between Harare and Bulawayo, which was built in 2001. After the Chinese shareholders invested in technological upgrading in 2014, dust emissions were effectively controlled, pollution was reduced, and cement production doubled.
Table 7: GDP per capita (blue line) and cement production (green line) in Zimbabwe 2000-2012/13
Table 8: Cement Plant, Capacity, Type, etc. in Southern African Countries
| Country | Number | Company | Location | Type | Status | Annual production capacity (million tons) |
| Botswana | 1 | Matsiloje Portland Cement Plant | Matsiloje | Small | In operation | 0.036 |
| | 2 | PPC Botswana | Gaborone | Grinding | In operation | 0.40 |
| | | | | | Total existing capacity in Botswana | 0.436 |
| Lesotho | 3 | Lesotho National Development Corporation | Lesotho | Integrated | Preparation | 0.20 (dry) |
| Mozambique | 4 | Mozambique Cement (InterCement) | MatolaI | Integrated | In operation | 0.70 (dry) |
| | 5 | InterCement | Dondo | Integrated | In operation | 0.74 (dry) |
| | 6 | InterCement | Nacala | Integrated | At present, only grinding is available. | 0.10 |
| | 7 | Sino-Mozambique Mining | Inhaminga | Integrated | Preparation | 1.0 (dry) |
| | 8 | Mozambique Cement (InterCement) | MatolaII | Integrated | In operation (leased) | 0.22 |
| | 9 | CimentosdeNacalaSA(InterCement) | Nacala | Grinding | In operation | 0.35 |
| |
10 | CimentoNacional(CimentoBrennand) | Maputo | Grinding | In operation | 0.55 |
| | 11 | ConsolidatedGeneralMinerals | Beira | Grinding | Under construction | 0.80 |
| | 12 | AustralCimentos | Dondo | Grinding | Debugging is in operation | 0.55 |
| | 13 | PCC Mozambique | Tete | Grinding | Under construction | 0.50 |
| | | | | | Total existing production capacity in Mozambique | 5.51 |
| Namibia | 14 | Ohorongo cement (SchwenkZement) | WalvisBay | Integrated | In operation | 0.70 (dry) |
| South Africa | 15 | Afrisam South Africa | Lichtenberg | Integrated | In operation | 1.80 (dry) |
| | 16 | Afrisam South Africa | Ulco | Integrated | In operation | 1.25 (dry) |
| | 17 | Lafarge Africa | Lichtenberg | Integrated | Partially sealed | 2.00 (dry) |
| | 18 | NPC(InterCement) | Port of Shepstone | Integrated | In operation | 1.50 (dry) |
| | 19 | PPC | Pretoria | Integrated | In operation | 0.58 (dry) |
| | 20 | PPC | Slurry | Integrated | In operation | 1.52 (dry) |
| | 21 | PPC | DeHoek | Integrated | In operation | 0.88 (dry) |
| | 22 | PPC | Dwaalboom | Integrated | In operation | 0.60 (dry) |
| | 23 | PPC | Elizabeth Port | Integrated | In operation | 0.20 (dry) |
| | 24 | PPC | Riebeeck | Integrated | In operation | 0.53 (dry) |
| | 25 | PPC | Cleveland | Integrated | In operation | 0.44 (dry) |
| | 26 | SephakuCement (Dangote) | Lichtenberg | Integrated | In operation | 1.25 (dry) |
| | 27 | Afrisam South Africa | Roodepoort | Grinding | In operation | - |
| | 28 | NPC(InterCement) | Durban | Grinding | In operation | 1.20 |
| | 29 | NPC(InterCement) | Newcastle | Slag grinding | In operation | 0.45 |
| | 30 | Lafarge Africa | Randfontein | Grinding | In operation | - |
| | 31 | Saldanha slag grinding station | RichardsBay | Slag grinding | In operation | - |
| | 32 | SephakuCement | Delmas | Grinding | In operation | 1.40 |
| | 33 | Mamba cement | Northam | Integrated | Under construction | - |
| | | | | | Total existing capacity in South Africa | <15 .6 |
| Zimbabwe | 34 | Lafarge Zimbabwe | Manresa, Harare | Integrated | In operation | 0.50 (wet) |
| | 35 | PPC Zimbabwe | Bulaweyo | Integrated | In operation | 0.76 (cement) + 0.3 (clinker) (refers to the capacity after the new cement plant is put into operation) |
| | 36 | PPC Zimbabwe | ColleenBawn | Integrated | In operation | |
| | 37 | Huajin cement | Quelu | Integrated | In operation | 0.2 |
| | 38 | PPC Zimbabwe | Harare | Integrated | It's still on the drawing board. | 1.0 (dry) |
| | | | | | Total existing capacity in Zimbabwe | 2.76 |
| | | | | | | |
| | | | | | Total existing integrated cement plant capacity | 16.9 |
| | | | | | Existing total grinding capacity | 6.4 |
| | | | | | Total | 23.3 |
Figure 6: Release map of integrated cement plants and grinding stations in Southern Africa (both in operation and in preparation)
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