Egyptian white elephants? A number of international companies have prequalified for a contract to build a large cement plant for the Egyptian, state-owned Beni Suef Cement Co., according to a report in Middle East Economic Digest. However, company executives are reported to have said that they are yet to be convinced of the feasibility of many new projects.

The short-list for the Beni Suef plant is understood to include a Japanese team of Kobe Steel and Mitsubishi Corp., Germany's Kloeckner Humboldt Deutz, Polysius, and Fuller of the United States.

Also thought to be expressing an interest is the Korea Heavy Industries & Construction Corp. (Hanjung).

The proposed plant is expected to have the capacity to produce 2.4 million mtpy and the Beni Suef company is understood to have indicated that it plans to set up a new, privately incorporated venture to carry out the expansion.

At present, Egypt produces around 18 million mt of cement per year and consumes approximately 20 million mt. However, three new lines are currently under construction by the Suez Cement Co. and the Egyptian Cement Co., and at least five other ventures are believed to be in the pipeline over the next three to four years. Investors are said to be wary that demand will not increase quickly enough to absorb the extra production.

Suez sell-off Four privatized Egyptian cement companies announced that they have offered private investors as many as 4.2 million shares of their combined stake in Suez Cement, according to a recent Reuters report.

A published statement named the four partly or totally privatized firms as Helwan Portland Cement, Egyptian Portland Tora Cement, National Cement (Kawmia), and Alexandria Cement. The shares were priced at an initial US$22.47, and investors had to buy at least 100 units.

Suez Cement is Egypt's fourth largest cement maker with a nominal capacity of 2.4 million mtpy.

Suez is pushing ahead, however, with a US$147 million expansion plan. Chairman Mahmoud el-Khouly said the company's new 1.35 million-mt line, being built by Polysius, would be open on schedule by Aug. 3, 1998.

Egyptian expansion Egypt's Amriyah Cement has gone out to tender for an expansion scheme expected to cost between US$30 million and $35 million. The project includes upgrading the firm's two mills to increase capacity by 250,000 mt per mill, with the work expected to take a maximum of 70 days, according to Ahmed el-Meqaty, chairman and managing director. Amriyah has a nominal capacity of 2.1 million mtpy but actually produces 2.34 million.

India powersOmani Cement Oman Cement has signed a US$15.3 million deal with an Indian company to set up a power plant in the Gulf state for its new cement factory. The official Omani News Agency has said the deal with India's BHEL was signed in Muscat recently, and the new power plant will have the capacity to produce 30 megawatts of electricity.

The director general of Oman Cement said the electricity generated would be used to power the company's existing factory plus another new plant under construction, both of which were estimated to require 28 megawatts. The new plant is scheduled to be completed at the end of the first quarter of 1998.

Oman Cement currently produces 600,00 mt of clinker and 900,000 mt of cement annually. The new plant would lift clinker production to 1.2 million mt and cement output would rise to 1.25 million mtpy.