PT Semen Indonesia Plans to Extend Vietnamese Plant

Surabaya, East Java (Antara) - PT Semen Indonesia Tbk. plans to increase the production capacity of its cement plant in Vietnam, Thang Long, to meet local demand as well as of the Southeast Asian market. Its president director, Dwi Soetjipto, said here on Sunday that since its acquisition at the end of 2012 Thang Long's production capacity reaching 2.4 million tons had been fully used and could not be increased again. "The only way to increase its production capacity is building a new plant in the southern part of Vietnam. We are still studying the plan and hopefully an action could be taken next year," he said. Dwi Soetjipto said, the new plant is expected to have a production capacity of minimally 1.5 million tons a year, adding the investment needed for it is around Rp3 trillion. The development of a new plant in Vietnam is not only aimed at meeting local demand but also markets in Southeast Asia such as Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines. "Markets in Southeast Asia and several other Asian countries are very potential. We would rely on Thang Long for entering the regional markets," he said. After acquiring 70 percent of Thang Long Cement shares, state-owned PT Semen Indonesia has continued expanding its business to the Asian region by acquiring plants in Bangladesh and Myanmar. To expand to Bangladesh Dwi Soetjipto said talks with a local partner were still ongoing and it was hoped an agreement could be reached soon. "I could not as yet be able to name the Bangladeshi company now. Just wait until it is all settled. Hopefully a certainty could be made in July," he said. (*)