Fijian Holdings Ltd (FHL) has revealed plans to have a new cement factory built over the next two to three years to replace its aging and problematic plant in Lami.
This was disclosed to FHL shareholders by FHL’s chief executive officer Jaoji Koroi at their annual general meeting last month.
Speaking in the iTaukei, Mr Koroi said the FHL subsidiary Pacific Cement Ltd had been riddled with machine breakdowns in recent times which had adversely affected production and profitability.
Last year, damaged machine parts had forced the plant to close down for two months.
Mr Koroi said the factory, which began operation in 1962, was riddled with old infrastructure and cannot be expected to keep running.
He said FHL, which owned 50 percent of Pacific Cement, and its two other shareholders had started preliminary work on the new cement factory.
FHL in its 2024 annual report stated the proposed plant would be able to produce a more environmentally-friendly product.
“Pacific Cement experienced a drop in numbers in the prior year due to lower price-controlled sales and the impact of aged production equipment.
The future looks promising as we see a strong pipeline of infrastructure projects including investment in Higgins (Fiji) Pte Ltd.
This joint venture with Fletcher Building and the Fiji National Provident Fund is expected to bring synergistic benefits and added value to the Group,” it stated.
FHL valued its shares in Pacific Cement at $10.406million this financial year compared to $12.066m last year, a drop of $1.660million.
