JSE-listed cement and building materials producer PPC has warned that the domestic cement industry will be pushed to produce and invest in neighbouring countries and bring cement from there into South Africa if the trend in cement imports continues.
PPC is particularly irked by cement imports from Vietnam and Mozambique.
PPC CEO Matias Cardarelli said on Monday the current anti-dumping application before the International Trade Administration Commission (Itac) related to cement imports from Mozambique and Vietnam has progressed and a favourable outcome would represent an important step towards restoring fair competition in the market.
“Creating a level playing field between local producers and importers is essential to supporting continued investment, employment and industrial capacity in South Africa,” he said in a five-month trading update for the period to end-August 2026.
“The continued growth of dumped imports, particularly from Mozambique, is not only undermining fair competition, but also placing South African jobs, investment and industrial capacity at risk.
“While local producers invest in environmental compliance, labour standards and community development, imported cement is not subject to the same obligations,” Cardarelli said.
“The urgent implementation of anti-dumping measures and carbon-border mechanisms is critical to restoring fair market conditions and preventing the further transfer of economic activity, employment opportunities and industrial value outside South Africa.”
Impact
During a presentation in June on PPC’s annual financial results for the to end-March, Cardarelli was even more vocal about the imported cement problem for the South African market.
Cardarelli said that since last year PPC has seen “a jump” in imported cement coming from Vietnam to 1.5 million tonnes after volumes remained at around 1 million tonnes for almost 10 years.
He said the same thing is happening with the cement imported from Mozambique, with very small amounts of cement of about 50 000 tonnes imported from West China Cement increasing to 300 000 tonnes.
Cardarelli said this represents “a big risk to South Africa”, particularly as West China Cement acquired AfriSam this year for R2.5 billion.
He believes the most probable scenario is that West China Cement will start to move production from the current AfriSam plant in South Africa to Mozambique.
This particularly due to the transaction being highly geared, which will make it difficult for it to make big investments in South Africa, and because AfriSam’s plants are, on average, 45 years old.
“Respectfully I think that South Africa will have to take a decision in terms of if really South African jobs matter or all these incentives in place are going move the industry to produce in neighbouring countries and to bring cement to South Africa because clearly it is cheaper to produce cement [in] Mozambique because you don’t pay the carbon tax, you don’t pay South African tax, you don’t pay South African labour costs, you don’t pay South African electricity costs and logistics costs.
“There is not a level playing field with competition with local production and that is a problem. I don’t have any problem to compete against any competitor but I would like to have the same rules to compete.”
Safeguards?
However, Cardarelli indicated at the time that he is “cautiously optimistic” about the government introducing safeguards on the importation of cement after having “very productive conversions” with the government “for the benefit of the country and the industry”.