The president of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has said the disruption of gas pipelines by the Niger Delta Avengers is behind the recent cement price increase in the market.
Speaking yesterday at a media parley in Abuja, Dangote who spoke through the Group Executive Director, Stakeholders’ Relations/Corporate Communications of the company, Engr. Ahmed Mansur, said the incessant attacks on gas pipelines led the company to resolve to import coal to power its cement plants, a process that increased the cost of production tremendously.
He said the decision by the company to increase the cement price from N1,300 to about N2,300 was not intentional but became necessary to recover cost of production.
Speaking on the volume of cement production by the company, he said it has increased from the initial 8 million tonnes per annum in 2010 to 40 million per annum presently, adding that the company is targeting producing 75-80 million tonnes annually by 2020.
Engr. Mansur said plans are also underway to build a new cement plant in Edo State in efforts aimed at increasing the volume of cement production.
He also said the company was making huge investments in the nation’s agricultural sector to diversify the nation’s economy from dependence on oil revenues in view of the present realities in oil production and prices.
He said the company has already commenced rice production in Jigawa State through out-growers and that efforts were ongoing to begin rice production in Kogi, Niger and Kebbi states, amongst others.
He said such efforts would enable the nation attain food sufficiency and stop the importation of foreign rice which presently costs the nation about $2 billion annually.
Mansur said the company was also investing in oil and gas, adding that a refinery that will refine 650,000 barrels of crude oil per day is being built in the country.
Pipelines attacks behind cement price increase – Dangote
The president of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has said the disruption of gas pipelines by the Niger Delta Avengers is behind the recent cement price…