By Ayman Adly
Staff Reporter
Though the demand for cement products is expected to almost double by 2017, any unreasonable price hike for the vital building material is unlikely due to the government’s tight control and monitoring of the market, a leading technocrat has said.
Engineer Khalid Kassas, general manager of Al Sarh Trading & Contracting Company, said current consumption of cement in the country is estimated at 5.5mn metric tonne per annum (mtpa). However, in the run-up to the Fifa World Cup 2022, this is likely to double to 10mn mtpa in the coming years.
Kassas said local producers are in a good position to meet increasing demand. If the need for importing cement arises in the future, neighbouring countries such as the UAE and Saudi Arabia could meet Qatar’s demands.
“It is a highly competitive market and local companies should come up with innovative solutions to cater to its various and varying needs. It could be considered a healthy sign in the market to encourage expansion and productivity, which is highly supported by the government,” he stressed.
Kassas said local companies in this field need to invest more to increase their production capacity and this is the proper time to make major upgrades for their facilities, including partnership with international players in the market.
“To keep our position, we have fully upgraded our new asphalt batching plant in Mesaieed Industrial City and fielding plant in Doha Industrial Area for concrete products. Also, our fleet of equipment and crushers has been completely enhanced and upgraded.”
Local producers should look ahead and adopt long-term investment strategies in terms of industrial assets such as machinery and equipment. They should also engage global experts to train their staff on how to operate these assets in a sustainable manner, Kassas said.
He pointed out that Qatar provides abundant contracting opportunities due to various mega projects, whether private or public, and to undertake these, local companies have to completely restructure their operations and be ready for constant upgrading.
Accompanying the construction boom is a very ambitious plan by Ashghal, the public works authority, to develop all the roads of the country and introduce more highways. Accordingly, Ashghal demands the integration of standard polymer asphalt blending system in most of the new projects that they are being implemented. The system is designed for fixed installations at facilities such as asphalt terminals. It blends poly (styrene-butadiene-styrene) or SBS, a hard rubber that is used where durability is important, with virgin asphalt cement, or bitumen, to make polymer-modified asphalt cement (PMAC).
“We are currently upgrading our system in our asphalt plant, incorporating the polymer modified bitumen system to cope with the demand from our clients,” Kassas said.
He said developing the human factor and workforce in such a process is essential.
“Maintaining a highly trained and qualified staff is key to success. We also do our best to care for our workers and labourers’ welfare, in particular providing them with adequate salaries, accommodation and related services,” he said.
Al Sarh Trading & Contracting Company was established in 1975 in Qatar. Currently it is a member of Mohamed Hayil Group of Companies.
