Cement, Energy and Environment

-- Almost half of the additional cement production capacity installed during the past five years has been constructed in southern India, which accounts for around 36 per cent of India's total installed cement production capacity. At the same time southern India's increased cement output represents 39 per cent of the overall increase in cement production during the period, with cement output in the south accounting for one third of India's total cement production. In 2008/2009, southern India's large scale cement plants totalled 77.9 million t installed production capacity and produced 59.9 miillion t of cement. Northern India is the country's second largest cement producing region. Exactly one third of the new cement production capacity installed during the period has been constructed in northern India, which accounts for around 22 per cent of India's total installed cement production capacity. Northern India's increased cement output accounts for 27 per cent of the overall increase in cement production during the period. Cement production in the north represents 23 per cent of India's total cement production. Northern India's large-scale cement plants totalled 49.9 million t installed production capacity in 2008/2009 and produced 41.2 million t of cement. After southern and northern India, eastern India has seen the next largest expansion in new cement production capacity and increased cement production since 2004/2005. The effect has been to lift eastern India's cement production capacity and cement output to a comparable level with western and central India. In 2008/2009, eastern India's large scale cement plants totalled 31 .3 million t installed production capacity and produced 26 million t of cement. Elsewhere, western India's large-scale cement plants totalled 32.4 million t installed production capacity in 2008/2009 and produced 28.5 million t of cement. In 2008/2009, central India's large scale cement plants totalled 27.6 million t installed production capacity and produced 26 million t of cement. Popular overseas Meanwhile, India's clinker and cement products remain popular in overseas markets, with combined exports totalling 6.1 million t in 2008/2009, accounting for about 2 per cent of total production. Clinker and cement exports are almost balanced with 3.2 million t of cement being exported in 2008/2009, down 11 per cent compared with 3.65 million t the previous year. Clinker exports rose 25 per cent to reach 2.9 million t in 2008/2009, up from 2.4 million t the previous year. Iraq is currently the largest export market for Indian cement, while Nepal is the second largest foreign market for cement and the largest export market for Indian clinker. Qatar and Kuwait are other important cement markets, while the United Arab Emirates has recently become an important market for clinker. Clinker production is growing in line with the increase in annual cement output. In 2008/2009, clinker production reached 138.8 million t, registering an increase of 6.9 per cent compared with the previous year. The Aditya Birla Group is India's largest cement manufacturing group by capacity and controls Grasim Industries, which produced 16.3 million t of cement and 13 million t of clinker in 2008/2009, and Ultratech Cement, which produced 15.9 million t of cement and 15.1 million t of clinker the same year. The combined output figures for Aditya Birla in 2008/2009 were 32.2 million t of cement and 28.1 million t of clinker. Sustained government investment in infrastructure and the corresponding growth in cement demand has encouraged many cement manufacturers to expand their existing facilities and plan construction of new cement plants. Foreign companies are among those investing in India. "India Is the world's second largest cement producer with a total Installed production capacity of 224 million t as of 30 ApriJ 2010." The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion recently announced that cumulative foreign direct investment in cement and gypsum production facilities from April 2000 to May 201 0 had totalled US$ 1.7 billion. Further foreign investment in cement production facilities is expected. Holcim Cement, for example intends to invest around US$ 1 billion setting up three cement plants on greenfield sites across India over the next five years and is looking to acquire cement plants in central and southern India. 89