[Original] Bolivia needs to import 600,000 bags of cement in short supply

Bolivia

   Itacamba Cemento, the Bolivian subsidiary of Votorantim, Brazil's largest cement company, plans to import 50,000 tons of cement in 2015 to guarantee the supply of cement to Santa Cruz, the country's capital and largest city. At the same time, the company will increase production by 6% to 3.6 million bags (50 kg per bag) in 2015.

   According to the cement industry in Bolivia (western South America), domestic cement demand is expected to grow by 8% to 10% in 2015. However, due to the shortage of domestic production, cement still needs to be imported from other countries. In 2014, the Bolivian government imported 600,000 bags of cement. Cement imports are expected to be similar in 2015.

   Guillermo Schrupp, president of the construction industry in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, said that before the completion of the Rosita Hydropower Station in 2018, two or three cement plants would need to be built in the medium and long term to meet the growing demand for cement.