Fortune Cement sets P700M for plant upgrade

Fortune Cement Corp. is investing around P700 million for the plant upgrade program beginning this year until next year to improve its plant’s operational efficiency. The amount is on top of the P68-million capital expenditure budget of the company this year.

Of the amount, the company intends to spend around P400 million for capital equipment, while P260 million will cover technical efficiency and P40 million for environmental improvements.

"This investment is a proof of our commitment to improve our plant’s technical efficiency and product quality," said Fortune Cement president Edgardo Soriano. "With our plant’s sustained reliability, we can assure our customers that we can supply their cement requirements."

He added the company is hopeful that the upgrade program will eventually help improve the underlying cost input of cement production. Energy consumption for instance, which includes cost of fuel, coal and electricity, has continued to rise and ranks among the highest in the world.

The implementation of the upgrade program will come in two phases. The phase will cover the replacement of the capital equipment while the second part centers on process improvement aimed at achieving the plant’s rated production capacity.

Fortune Cement is a subsidiary of Republic Cement Corp. Group of Companies, in which Lafarge, the world leader in construction materials, has investments.