Coal news and updates

India’s cement output up 10.66% in December m-o-m

February 16: India’s cement production stood at 23.15 million tons (mt) in December 2014, up 10.66% from 20.92 mt produced in November 2014, according to a compilation by ICMW.

During the corresponding month of the previous fiscal of 2013-14, India’s cement production stood at 22.28 mt.

During the first nine months (April-December) of the current financial year of 2014-15, total cement production stood at 199.97 mt as compared to 185.27 mt produced during the corresponding period of the previous fiscal.

Total cement production during 2013-14 stood at 255.63 mt compared to 248.23 mt recorded during the previous year.

Cement manufacturers are currently operating at around 75% of the total installed capacity while the remaining 25% continues to lie idle due to lack of adequate orders, said an industry source. However, the cement industry looks optimistic of a slight improvement in the market in the near future, sources said.

Despite lukewarm demand, some of the major cement manufacturers are in capacity addition mode and are coming up with new grinding units in central India. This is primarily due to ready availability of ash, he added.

The following table shows India’s month-wise cement production in 2012-13 (revised), 2013-14 and 2014-15: