Cement Americas provides comprehensive coverage of the North and South American cement markets from raw material extraction to delivery and tranportation to end user.
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CEMENTSCOPE Cemex Begins $18 Million Housing Project in Dominican Republic tion of 568 houses with a total investment of approximately $18 million, according to a statement released by Cemex. The first 60 units will be delivered in December 2013. Carlos Gonzalez, president of Cemex in the Dominican Republic, stated that the housing projects are part of the company's new initiative, which focuses on providing integral solutions for social development that allow building of the cities of the future. Construction has begun on 186 units of affordable housing in San Pedro de Macoris, a province of the Dominican Republic. The homes are part of the first stage of the Altos del Higuamo project, which includes the construcCEMENT TOTALS Total shipments of portland and blended cement in the United States and Puerto Rico in June 2013 were about 7.6 million metric tons (Mt), down slightly from the level in June 2012, according to a recently released USGS Mineral Industry Survey. Shipments for the year through June were 37.2 Mt, essentially unchanged. The leading portland cement producing states in June were Texas, Missouri, California, Michigan and Florida, in descending order and these shipped about 45 percent of the total shipments for the month. The leading consuming states (Texas, California, Florida, Ohio and Illinois, in descending order) received about 36 percent of the June total shipments. Preliminary results for July 2013 show portland and blended cement shipments totaling 8.1 Mt for the month, and 45.1 Mt for the year through July. JUNE/JULY 2013 2 "CEMEX has the technology, international experience, and capacity to participate in any stage of our client's projects, in order to become their ally and provide them with the service they require. Our goal is to work together with the communities, government, developers, builders and other sectors, to channel resources, technology and our know-how, in order to build cities that are more sustainable," stated Gonzalez. The project is starting thanks to the conditions created by the government, such as the handling of plans through a unique window and the increase in the range of prices for affordable housing. "We recently received a housing certification issued by the National Housing Institute (INVI), that will allow acquirers to receive the benefit of a Housing Bonus and lower down payment to acquire their own home," Gonzalez explained. The housing complex will include green, institutional service and commercial areas; a playground and multifunctional sports facilities; sewage treatment plant; underground cables; concrete streets; and solar energy in common areas. Bel-Ray, Marco Announce Expansion into Columbia A U.S.-based specialty lubricant company announced the expansion of service with Marco for the distribution of their mining and marine product lines in Colombia. Marco is a mining service company operating in Chile, Peru, Panama, Ecuador and now Colombia. Colombian mining companies are now able to rely on a one-stop shopping approach with Bel-Ray's product line and Marco's support to deliver total lubrication and service solutions, the company said. Bel-Ray products have shown increased machine productivity leading to cost-savings and as a result, a more profitable mining operation, according to the company. "Bel-Ray's premium high-performance products are widely used throughout South America in the mining industry. With this expansion, Bel-Ray increases its footprint and presence in Colombia, offering the country's mining companies in the world a boutique level of service and high performance products," said Bel-Ray's COO Jennifer Liquori. "For Marco to initiate the distribution and support of Bel-Ray in Colombia is very exciting," Hans Schmidt, president of the Marco Group of companies, stated. "Marco expects the same success that it has had in other Latin American countries that have heavy mining and other industries. Recently formed, Marco Colombia is one of 10 companies that fall under the Marco Group umbrella, supplying equipment and services to most industries, including the mining, maritime and transport industries. CEMENT AMERICAS • Fall 2013 • www.cementamericas.com