Date: July 18, 2019
Caribbean Cement Company Limited’s (CCC) held its 70th AGM today July 18, 2018 at the Spanish Court Hotel. This meeting was hosted by Mr. Parris A. Lyew- Ayee, chairman of CCC who highlighted Mr. Peter Donkersloot, current General Manager will be leaving the Company and replaced by Mr. Yago Castro Izaguirre effective August 1, 2019.
With the change in management of Cemex Group from the Trinidad Cement Limited (TCL) Group in 2017, CCC has continuously placed focus on safety as they aim towards ‘Zero4Life’. With that said, Mr, Donkersloot indicated that for 2019, health and safety will again remain CCC’s number one priority.
For FY2018, Mr. Donkersloot highlighted the following achievements:
- Completed the installation of a new coal mill facility, upgraded the Reclaiming system for raw materials and further modernized the Packing Plant.
- Successfully completed critical projects to improve the operational efficiency and to ensure business continuity
- Reduced working capital by 36%
- Increased $15.5 billion JMD in buying assets previously under the lease payed $3.8 billion during 2018.
- Assisted more than 180 communities through their CSR activities.
Outlook
As Jamaica’s macroeconomic outlook remains positive, CCC is “confident that the construction industry will continue to grow, driven by the demand for housing and reported plans that Jamaica is set to add more than 7,500 new hotel rooms over the next two years, with Kingston seeing the addition of 500 new rooms by the end of 2019.
The Company is also working on a 10-year lease with the Rockford Mineral Bath Complex (RMBC). Here, the company intends to spend a total of over $60 million in investments to turn RMBC into a world place attraction. The company intends to follow the following breakdown:
- Phase 1: Public Bath, estimated cost $15 million
- Phase 2: Private Bath, estimated cost $20 million
- Phase 3: Remodeling of the Fort, estimated cost $25 million
In addition to running over 35 projects with a capex of $1.4 billion, the company also indicated that a contingency plan has been prepared for the main equipment as well as continuous efforts to seek options in alternative fuels. They also aim to continue pushing the shift from asphalt to concrete roads across the islands.
CCC’s Main External Challenges
- Competition
- Avoidance of rules and regulations for probably customers
- Importers with lower cost structure
- New disruptive players
- Regulation Framework
- Low enforcement on CARICOM rules to foster economy
- Crime
- Economy
- Increase in devaluation
- Decrease in international reserves
- Energy Cost
- High electricity cost
- High dependencies on fossil fuel
- Environment
- Rain, flowing and hurricanes
- Dust emissions
Disclaimer:
Analyst Certification -The views expressed in this research report accurately reflect the personal views of Mayberry Investments Limited Research Department about those issuer (s) or securities as at the date of this report. Each research analyst (s) also certify that no part of their compensation was, is, or will be, directly or indirectly, related to the specific recommendation (s) or view (s) expressed by that research analyst in this research report.
Company Disclosure -The information contained herein has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, however its accuracy and completeness cannot be guaranteed. You are hereby notified that any disclosure, copying, distribution or taking any action in reliance on the contents of this information is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. Mayberry may effect transactions or have positions in securities mentioned herein. In addition, employees of Mayberry may have positions and effect transactions in the securities mentioned herein.