Viet Nam's total productivity is estimated to reach 95 million tonnes by 2020. — Photo tinnhanhchungkhoan.vn

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Cement consumption in Viet Nam will this year reach 60 million tonnes, while 15.5-17 million tonnes of cement and clinker will be exported.

This was revealed by Viet Nam Cement Association Chairman Nguyen Quang Cung at INTERCEM Asia 2016 held in Ha Noi on September 19-21.

INTERCEM Asia 2016 is the global leader in events devoted to market developments, production, trading, transportation and handling of cement, clinker and related products. Cement producers and businesses from all over Asia gathered for the event, which connects businesses and helps boost the development of the cement industry, including production, consumption and exports.

Cung said Viet Nam's total productivity was estimated to reach 95 million tonnes by 2020, of which domestic consumption would increase by 5-5.5 million tonnes annually, reaching 80 million tonnes. The remaining volume of 15 million tonnes would be be shipped overseas.

"Viet Nam will be able to meet the increasing demands of production and export of cement and clinker by that time," Cung added.

Anirban Lahiri, senior manager of Viet Capital Securities JSC's Research Division, said the effects of urbanisation and modernisation on infrastructure development in Viet Nam would motivate the growth of the cement industry.

In a market that has seen an increasing number of large suppliers, the competition would not only be in terms of price and quality, but also in logistics service, an important factor for producers who wanted to sell cement in the country and export effectively, Anirban said.

Being a private business with an annual production capacity of more than 10 million tonnes in Viet Nam, Nguyen Tien Dat, deputy general director of Vissai Group, said several domestic businesses were dealing with fierce competition from regional nations such as Thailand and China.

Dat said Vissai would begin construction on the first phase of the Song Lam Cement Factory in October this year. The factory was designed to have a capacity of one million tonnes, bringing the group's total capacity to 12 million tones.

"With such a high production capacity, it won't be less pressure on the group in the current competitive situation," Dat said.

"We have decided that we will focus on investment in the cement distribution system. In the 2016-18 period, our key strategy is to raise consumption through the logistics system, which will also create more favourable conditions for exports and for sustainable development," he added. — VNS