Riyadh Cement CEO says demand grows 6% in Q1 2021; prices likely to remain steady until year-end

Shoeil Al-Ayed, CEO of Riyadh Cement

Demand for cement rose by 6% in the first quarter of 2021, Riyadh Cement CEO Shoeil Al-Ayed, told Argaam in a telephone interview.

Demand is expected to maintain its uptrend at the same percentage amid stable prices until the end of the year, he added.

Commenting on the company’s 2020 financial results, Al-Ayed said that the average selling prices of grey and white cement reached SAR 188 and SAR 372 per ton, respectively.

Riyadh Cement’s inventory of grey clinker and white cement stood at 1.6 million tons and 61,000 tons, respectively, by the end of Q4 2020.

The company’s production capacity of grey clinker reached 3.5 million tons, while white clinker hit 300,000 tons, the CEO stated, noting that Riyadh Cement can boost its white clinker capacity to 900,000 tons after converting one of its grey cement production lines for dual production purposes, when necessary.

Moreover, Al-Ayed expects housing projects in the Kingdom to boost the company’s sales and profitability.

Riyadh Cement reported a net profit after Zakat and tax of SAR 220 million for 2020, an increase of 16% from SAR 190 million a year earlier, Argaam reported.