Hanoi (VNA) - The country’s cement surplus thisyear could be 30 million tonnes and reach 35 million tonnes by 2020 if Vietnam doesnot export cement.

Nguyen Quang Cung, Chairman of the Vietnam Cement Association(VNCA), told online newspaper Dien Dan Doanh Nghiep (Business Forum)that total designed capacity of the cement industry was 88 million tonnes peryear in 2016. The country’s total cement capacity would reach 120-130million tonnes by 2020.

Meanwhile, domestic cement demand by 2020 was expected to be82 million tonnes, leading to a surplus 36-47 million tonnes.

The association’s forecast showed that the country’s cementdemand would increase by 5-6 million tonnes per year.

By the end of last year, the cement industry added 6.8million tonnes from Song Lam Cement Plant’s first phase and Long Son CementPlant. Another five cement projects are under construction and will becomeoperational in 2020, adding 12.7 million tonnes to the sector.

Cung was quoted by the newspaper as saying that the cementoversupply was because the industry’s planning was backward. Real capacityturned out to be higher than what was estimated thanks to improvements intechnologies.

He added that export prices of cement and clinker weresharply reduced due to fierce competition in the market. Cement oversupply inChina was also 600-700 million tonnes, 7-8 times higher than that of Vietnam.

Further, China, India and Pakistan were rushing to lowerexport price, causing a decrease in Vietnam’s cement exports, he said, addingthat the VNCA proposed the Government work with other countries to reduceimport taxes and support transport costs for building materials includingcement.

Figures from VNCA revealed that cement consumption in the localmarket in the first 11 months of the year was some 55.63 million tonnes,slightly increasing by two percent from the same period last year and meeting87 percent of the whole year’s target.

Cement and clinker exports reported a year-on-year increaseof 27 percent in the January-November period.

The chairman said cement producers should be active in searching for exportmarkets.

Nguyen Tran Nam, Chairman of the Vietnam Real EstateAssociation, shared the opinion, saying the building material market in 2018would face challenges as the number of new real estate projects would not behigh, in addition to fierce competition from imported products.

Nam told a press meeting held in Hanoi last month that theproperty market this year would see stable development.

He said consumption of many essential building materials suchas cement, sand, brick and steels was slow in 2017.

Nam said Vietnamese producers of building materials shouldhave suitable production plans while renewing technologies towards friendlyenvironmental products.

Firms were also asked to improve competitiveness by reducingprices and enhancing branding, he added.-VNA