Carib Cement more transparent

THE EDITOR, Sir: IN A letter to the editor of this newspaper dated April 12, 2017, I expressed some concerns I had regarding the operations of the Caribbean Cement Company (CCC) relating to frequent shortages of the main input of our construction industry and requested that they provide pertinent and more timely information to investors and the public at large.

Subsequently, I was contacted by CCC Company Secretary Craig Neil, inviting me to a meeting with General Manager Peter Donkersloot, which I had requested, and I was given the opportunity to invite two other minority shareholders who had similar and other concerns.

Commendations to the leadership of the company for their invitation and for facilitating a frank and open discussion. We were assured by Mr Donkersloot that our concerns would be addressed and that the company would be able to meet the present and future demands of the construction industry for cement.

IMPROVED PERFORMANCE

I am pleased that after a request by the Jamaica Stock Exchange, the company has furnished a first-quarter report revealing an increased level of disclosure. Additionally, I was very impressed when The Gleaner, dated May 12 (online) and 13, 2017, stated that the CCC was able to package and distribute more than one million bags of cement promised to the market (during the shortage in April) in 23 days instead of the planned 31 days, which represented a 22 per cent increase in the average packing rate, prior to an upgrade to their packaging process.

In addition, the CCC has accomplished an improved packing performance exceeding 60,000 bags on May 3 (a production rate not achieved in six months), the release said.

I trust that with your expressed commitment to take the CCC to its highest level of efficiency, you and your team will be ever mindful of the thousands of direct and indirect jobs that are impacted by the construction industry.

Kudos, Mr Donkersloot! This is indeed a positive step forward. I am sure your thousands of minority shareholders appreciate this new level of disclosure and we look forward to continued improvement. NIGEL O. COKE Minority shareholder of CCC