Cement producers build up profits in Romania

The three big cement producers in Romania saw sales increases and higher profits in 2015. Overall, the cement business went up by 13%, to EUR 662 million, and profits increased by 30%, to EUR 69 million, according to official data from the Finance Ministry, cited by local Wall-street.ro. Holcim Romania increased its business by 15% last year, reaching a turnover of EUR 253 million. The company also posted a net profit of EUR 29 million, 81% higher compared to 2014. CRH Romania, the local subsidiary of Irish group CRH, which took over French group Lafarge’s local operations, also increased its turnover by 23%, reaching EUR 221 million, and surpassing German competitor Heidelbergcement. CRH Romania’s profit was slightly lower than in 2014, at EUR 15 million. Heidelbergcement had sales of EUR 188 million and a net profit of EUR 25 million, 19% higher than in 2015. The three companies had close to 2,400 employees in Romania. editor@romania-insider.com