Expansion plans of Siam Cement Plc

30-Mar-05

Cementhai Chemical Company, a unit of Siam Cement Plc, has been among the biggest contributors to the top and bottom lines of SCC over the past two years. Last year the petrochemical unit had assets of 82 billion baht- almost a third of total assets of the entire group. Its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) were 26.64 billion baht or 43% of the total. Siam Cement continues to view the petrochem sector as a key source of its future potential and is looking at opportunities to expand in key markets. The group plans to invest US$200 million in a petrochemical unit in Iran, in a bid to take advantage of cheaper feedstocks. Lower priced raw materials could be a a stepping stone to future expansion in the Middle East. Another project that Siam Cement is reviving is its long-delayed Indonesian venture, where it had earlier written off an investment of 2 billion baht. Siam Cement holds a 17% stake in the 20 billion baht aromatics project, with an annual capacity of 500,000 tons. Domestically, Cementhai Chemical is considering an investment of 40-50 billion baht in a new cracker with a total capacity of about 2 million tpa: 700,000 tpa of ethylene, 700,000 tpa of propylene and 60,000 tpa of toluene and benzene.