Infrastructure investment supports rising Dominican cement demand

Greenwich (CT), USA, July 12, 2017 – According to CW Research’s Dominican Republic Cement Market Report (2017 update), domestic cement demand shows a projected annual increase of 4.5%, reaching nearly five million tons by 2021. Large-scale infrastructure projects, such as highways, roads and bypasses, coupled with affordable housing initiatives and tourism-enabling construction will boost the construction sector’s share of GDP to more than ten percent by 2021.

In 2016, supported by the government’s continued investment in public works and infrastructure, the construction sector recorded a nine percent increase. Most of the investment has been channeled towards the Duarte Corridor, a complex of underpasses and connecting roads intended to improve circulation in the capital, Santo Domingo. Housing and concrete usage in road building have also contributed to boost cement demand. The country’s geographical location makes it susceptible to adverse weather conditions, thus requiring large-scale road maintenance every other three to four years.

However, as the CW Research’s Senior Consulting Analyst Raluca Cercel stresses, “despite the strengths and opportunities of the highly consolidated Dominican cement market, there are some possible impending threats, such as high levels of red tape, electricity supply issues, as well as tense relations with Haiti, its largest foreign consuming market.”

Cement trade plays important role

Heavily reliant on cement exports, the Dominican market is susceptible to both national and global economic fluctuations. Domestically, variations in the price of gold are particularly influential, since the commodity ranks among the country’s top exports. The global economic environment also proved detrimental to the cement industry, when, in 2009, consumption recorded a sharp decline, falling below three million tons as remittances from the US fell sharply. In 2014, cement consumption recovered, reaching mid-three million tons.

The Dominican cement market is the single largest manufacturer and consumer in the Caribbean. As of 2017, the industry has an installed capacity of more than eight million tons. Over the same period, demand is projected to surpass four million tons, whereas imports will near one million tons of cement.

Today, there are seven cement companies operating in Dominican Republic. Cementos Cibao, Cemex, Domicem and Estrella operate integrated cement plants, whereas Argos, Cementos La Union and Cementos Andinos Dominicanos operate grinding facilities. Cemex Dominicana operates the largest cement plant in the market, contributing to 30% of the country’s installed cement capacity, followed by Cementos Cibao and Domicem.

Trade-wise, the market’s geographical position enables domestic cement manufacturers to rid of excess production through exports to both other Caribbean islands, and Central and South American markets. Relative to many of the islands in the Caribbean, the lower ex-works pricing of cement in the Dominican Republic makes the market well placed to export to islands that need to source their cement externally.

Consequently, Dominican manufacturers export to several smaller markets throughout the Caribbean. Among them, Haiti emerges as the largest importer of Dominican cement. In 2016, the Haitian government sought to stem the imports from Dominican Republic arriving by road, despite the fact that domestic cement production is not sufficient to meet local demand. Nevertheless, out of the almost one million tons of cement exported in 2016, more than 80% of the volume was channeled to Haiti.

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For more information, placing an order, or interview inquiries, please contact Liviu Dinu, Market Services & Marketing Consultant, CW Group, by phone at +40-744-67-44-11, or e-mail at ld@cwgrp.com.

About the Report

The Dominican Republic Cement Market Report, part of CW Research’s Cement Industry Country Report series, meets the country-level cement market research needs of small and large businesses, analysts and governments. The reports cover cement volume trends in detail, analyzing trade flows, cement demand and production (historical and a five-year outlook), per capita consumption, and the competitive landscape, including company profiles, cement production facility details, including past and announced brownfield production increases and greenfield projects. Cement Industry Country Reports also cover demand drivers, including macro-economic and construction sector dynamics, for the specific country. Industry reports are presented in an objective, easy-to-understand format, providing hard-to-find answers to top market research questions.

More information about the report can be found here: http://www.cwgrp.com/research/research-products/country-reports/product/236-dominican-republic-cement-market-report-2017-update

About CW Group
The Greenwich (Conn.), USA-headquartered CW Group is a leading advisory, research and business intelligence boutique with a global presence and a multi-industry orientation. CW Group is particularly recognized for its sector expertise in heavy-side building materials (cement), light-side building materials, traditional and renewable power & energy, petrochemicals, metals & mining, industrial minerals, industrial manufacturing, bulk cargo & shipping, among others. We have a strong functional capability, grounded in our methodical and quantitative philosophy, including due diligence, sourcing intelligence, feasibility studies and commodity forecasting. www.cwgrp.com

PO Box 5263, Greenwich, CT 06831, USA

Liviu Dinu
Market Services & Marketing Consultant
M: +40-744-67-44-11
E: ld@cwgrp.com

This release was published on openPR.