A consortium of Asec Cement and Qemmet El-Iraq has won a 14-year contract to manage the Muthanna Cement Plant in southern Iraq.
The plant is located between Najaf and Basra and is one of seven controlled by Southern Cement Company – the state holding company that controls Muthanna Cement.
Work will begin in the second quarter of 2014, with a view to reaching the full two million tonnes per annum production capacity by August 2016.
Representatives of the consortium — including Abulla Hussein of Qemmet El-Iraq as well as ASEC Cement chairman and CEO Giorgio Bodo — attended a signing ceremony in Baghdad with Southern Cement Company on 28 August 2013.
"We are delighted to be entering this new market with a high-profile project that is economically vital to Iraq," said Bodo.
"Iraq has embarked on a robust plan to rebuild and modernize its infrastructure and has launched major housing, industrial, and community projects.
"The rehabilitation of Muthanna is an important part of Iraq s investment in bridging the supply gap, particularly in the south."
The value of the contract was not disclosed.
