international
construction
december 2013
WORLD NEWS
POLAND
Research company PMR
surveyed 200 of Poland’s largest
construction companies and found
that 19% reported a loss in 2012, 12%
broke even and 69% reported a net
profit. For 2013, 20% expected to break
even, 15% expected a net loss and 65%
expected to report net profit.
COSTA RICA
The Inter-American
Development Bank is to lend US$ 400
million to Costa Rica to upgrade its
road and port infrastructure. The China
Co-financing Fund for Latin America
has also pledged US$ 50 million for the
project, which will repair or pave up to
110 km of the national road network,
widen 51 km of roads, and build or
repair 19 bridges.
ITALY
The Italian construction
equipment market was down-24%
in the first nine months of the year,
compared to the same period last year,
according to manufacturers’ trade
association UNACEA. Sales totalled
4,091 machines in the first three
quarters, compared to 5,386 in January
to September 2012.
UZBEKISTAN
The Asian
Development Bank has agreed a
US$ 110 million loan for a 100 MW solar
power plant in Samarkand, the capital
of Samargand Province. The Uzbekistan
Government aims to generate 21% of
the country’s power from renewable
sources, including solar, by 2031.
KOSOVO
A Bechtel-Enka joint venture
has completed a 77.4 km motorway in
Kosovo a year ahead of schedule. The
€
800 million (US$ 1.1 billion) contract
for the four-lane Route 7 motorway
included 15 bridges and runs from
Morina at the southwest border with
Albania to Trude, north of the capital
Pristina. The Kosovo government now
plans to tender a further section of
Route 7, connecting to the Serbian
border.
NAMIBIA
The African Development
Bank has agreed a ZAR 2.9 billion
(US$ 338 million) loan to the Namibian
Ports Authority (Namport) to finance the
construction of a new container terminal
at the Port of Walvis Bay. The Namport
development is part of Namibia’s
National Development Plan, which aims
to position the country as a regional
logistics hub by 2017.
HIGHLIGHTS
PHILIPPINES
Industry aids typhoon
reconstruction
Development banks and equipment manufactures
provide support after Typhoon Haiyan.
E
mergency funding and equipment donations have been granted for
the relief and reconstruction work being carried out in the Philippines
following Typhoon Haiyan.
One of the most powerful storms ever recorded on land, the typhoon made
landfall on the eastern and central islands of the Philippines on 8 November.
It destroyed buildings, uprooted trees and sent a huge storm surge into
coastal areas. Over 5,500 people are confirmed to have died, with more than
11 million affected.
The World Bank has pledged US$ 480 million in financial assistance
for the Philippines National Community Driven Development Project.
The project will support typhoon-affected communities rebuild local and
livelihood-related infrastructure such as water supplies, roads, schools and
clinics, using retroactive financing.
The Asian Development Bank also granted a US$ 500 million emergency
loan as well as a US$ 23 million for immediate relief to affected areas.
Meanwhile, manufacturers JCB and Hyundai have separately donated
construction equipment to help with the recovery effort.
JCB donated US$ 500,000 worth of equipment to the Philippines – a
fleet of three backhoe loaders and 120 generators to help in the clean-up
operations.
Hyundai donated US$ 200,000 via the Korean Red Cross, together with a
21-tonne class excavator, a backhoe loader and operators.
6
GLOBAL
Housing
construction
to grow
+3.3% a year
Worldwide construction of new
housing is expected to increase
+3.3% a year to reach 60.9 million
units in 2017, according to research
company Freedonia.
It said increased rural-to-urban
migration, especially in developing
countries, would spur construction
of new housing units in urban areas.
And even though expansion of
the world population is projected
to decelerate, the number of
households in the world is expected
to grow +1.5% annually, adding to
the demand for new housing.
In 2012, the world housing
stock was nearly 2.0 billion units.
According to Freedonia, this stock
will grow roughly in line with new
household formations, causing the
housing stock to increase +1.8% per
year to 2.2 billion units in 2017.
The Asia Pacific region accounted
for slightly over half of the world
housing stock in 2012, and is
forecast to maintain that share
through to 2017.
Together, the Asia Pacific and
Africa/Middle East regions are
expected to account for over 80%
of the world’s new housing units
constructed in 2017.
Meanwhile,
North
America
is forecast to experience annual
housing construction gains of
+8.9% while Western Europe can
expect gains of +5.9% a year.
GLOBAL
Cement demand to rise
Worldwide demand for cement
could reach 4.7 billion tonnes in
2017, according to market research
company Freedonia.
Cement sales are forecast to
expand by more than +5% a year
between now and 2017, which
represents a slight decline in pace
from the 2007 to 2012 period.
However, for markets such as
NorthAmerica andWesternEurope,
which were hit hard by the global
economic recession and therefore
saw demand for cement stagnate
or decline, cement consumption is
expected to rebound sharply by as
much as +6%.
Eastern Europe is also tipped to
perform much better by Freedonia.
But China, which has led global
demand for cement in recent years,
is expected to see growth decelerate
in the coming years.
Despite this, it will still command
more than 50% of all additional
cement demand between now and
2017. Sales in China are projected
to rise nearly +5% a year during this
period, still a healthy growth but
down on the double-digit pace of
the last decade.
Demand for cement in the rest of
the Asia/Pacific region is expected
to accelerate.
According to Freedonia, the
non-building segment of the
global cement market is expected
to outperform its counterparts, as
governments in both developed
and
industrialising
countries
invest heavily in improving public
infrastructure.
Blended cement is projected to
account for 75% of all new product
demand generated between 2012
and 2017.
Despite losing market share, the
forecast is for Portland cement to
still be used extensively in higher-
end applications.
