Cement dispatches reach 26.97mln tons

ISLAMABAD: Domestic cement dispatches posted a healthy growth of 17.31 percent to 26.97 million tons in July-March 2016, as compared to 22.99 million tons during the same period last year.

The growth situation during the current year improved to 9.7 percent as compared to 3.9 percent last year.

In view of the expected demand from development projects under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) and China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), as well as ongoing housing schemes in public and private sector, the cement industry is looking forward to expand its production capacity from the existing level of 45.62 million tons to approximately 53 million tons in the next two to three years.

The cement industry gained from vibrant construction activities on a number of infrastructure and power related projects, which were taken up during period under review.

The Public Sector Development Programme spending increased from Rs350 billion in 2013 to Rs700 billion in 2016. The CPEC programme is also creating demand of cement and allied materials. The cement industry is also planning to expand capacity with an investment of $1 billion in view of the growing demand within the domestic market.