The European Investment Bank, the European Union’s financing institution, is providing a further US$ 15 million to the Algerian Cement Company Spa (ACC), the country’s only private sector cement producer, for expanding its existing cement works near M’Sila, 240 km south-west of the Algerian capital, constructed with EUR 66 million EIB loan and other financing over the period 2002-2004.
The EIB finance agreement has been signed recently in Paris by Mr. Ph. de Fontaine Vive, EIB Vice-President, with special responsibility for EIB’s financing arm for the Mediterranean Partner Countries, the FEMIP, and Mr. Nassef Sawiris, Orascom Construction Industries (OCI) Chief Executive Officer.
Philippe de Fontaine Vive at the signature ceremony stated: “This is an exemplary South-South private sector investment, building on the experience of the Orascom Construction Industries group and bringing together Egyptian, Algerian end European investors for the development of a crucial economic sector for Algerian economy. It ties in with the objectives of FEMIP, which aims at liberalisation of the economy and economic cooperation between the Mediterranean Partner Countries underpinned by the Barcelona Process”.
The first production line built on a greenfield site has been commissioned in early March 2004, contributing according to Mr Nassef Sawiris, to the Group’s enhanced economic performance.
The project consists of one single, additional production line with a capacity of 2m tons of cement. It will use the classical, state of the art and energy efficient dry process, with modern pollution control equipment, as the first line.
ACC is the wholly-owned Algerian subsidiary of the leading Egyptian group OCI traded since 1999 on the Cairo and Alexandria Stock Exchange. (menareport.com)
© 2004 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
