While it does not provide clear information on the trend of cement sales in 2014, the group announced a strong increase in cement volumes sold in Romania, as well as a slight increase in the price of this building material in 2014.
Carpatcement Holding, the main company through which the German group is present in Romania, registered revenue of above EUR164 million in 2013. The company also posted net profit worth EUR14.4 million the same year, namely a margin of 8.8%, while during the boom years the margin stood above 30%.
The increase in volumes HeidelbergCement sold in Romania in 2014 is in line with the estimates of CIROM, the Romanian Association of Cement Producers, which recently said the local cement market in 2014 advanced by 5-6%, reverting to the level of 2012.
CIROM specified the market was driven up by private housing and non-housing investment and the good weather of the first quarter of 2014. Instead, infrastructure works plummeted.
By value, the local cement market amounted to EUR500-600 million annually, according to ZF estimates.
For 2015, CIROM expects the cement market to advance again by 5-6% as the local construction field is also forecast to rise by around 5%, according to the National Prognosis Commission.
(English version by Catalina Apostoiu)