Eagle, Northern cement expand production capacity

Eagle and Northern Cement companies, which now account for about 30 percent of the local market, are expanding their production capacities in light of the tightness in domestic supply.

An industry source said the two cement plants, which are among the units of diversified conglomerate San Miguel Corp., were upbeat in the local construction industry.

The entire Eagle and Northern cement plants have combined production capacity of six million metric tons with Eagle contributing four million metric tons.

Eagle, which is located in Bulacan, has not yet covered the entire market of Luzon, while Northern Cement has been supplying in areas where Eagle has no presence.

Both Eagle and Northern Cement are subsidiaries of SMC led by business tycoon Ramon S. Ang started sharing market five years ago.

Unlike other cement companies, which have already nationwide coverage, Eagle and Northern are still trying to make strong presence in other areas particularly Visayas and Mindanao.

"Cement demand is huge," said the source because of the booming construction industry and huge government infrastructure projects.

The expansion in production capacity is also expected to boost the two firms’ market share. Eagle has concentrated more on hardware and retail segment, which is growing faster than the business segment.

Eagle cement is also making headway because it is priced slower than other brands. Retail price of Eagle cement is retailed at R232 per 40 kilogram as against other brands at R238240 per bag.(BCM)