Citeureup, Bogor (ANTARA News) - Publicly traded cement company PT Indocement Tunggal Prakarsa Tbk. said it cut its exports by 84.5 percent but raised sales on the domestic market in 2012.

The company reduced exports to 0.1 million tons in 2012 from 0.6 million tons in the previous year to meet growing demand on the domestic market, corporate secretary Sahat Panggabean said.

Its sales on the domestic market, therefore, surged 12.3 percent to an all time record of 17.9 million tons in 2012 from 15.4 million tons in 2011, he said.

The market share of the company`s brand of "Tiga Roda" rose to 32 percent in 2012 from 31.5 percent in the previous year, Sahat noted.

He said the company`s expansion with big investment in its Ready-Mix Concrete (RMC) business in 2012 by installing new batching plant, contributed significantly to increase in its market share especially in the Greater Jakarta area.

He said growing Indonesian middle class and healthy macro economic growth are among the main factors pushing up domestic demand notably in the housing market.

He said on February 22, in 2013 the company signed an initial agreement (letter of Intent) on the equipment provision service, construction and implementation with the Sinoma Group.

The LOI was part of the plan to build a new factory in Citeureup, in the regency of Bogor, at a cost of up to Rp6.5 trillion, he said.

He said the company was ready to spend big fund for investment as it believes demand for cement in the country would continue to grow with big plan of the government to build infrastructure projects including toll roads and power plants.

"Construction of new infrastructure projects would also boost development of property around the infrastructure," he said.

The company, therefore, will start the construction of a new cement factories with a production capacity of 4.4 million tons a year in its complex in Citeureup this year to be completed in 2015.

Company`s chief spokesman Aldo Yuliardy said Indocement has three factories in operation - one in Citeureup, one in Palimanan of Cirebon and another in Tarjun, Kota Baru, South Kalimantan.

Altogether the factories have a total production capacity of 18.6 million tons of cement a year, Aldo said.

The one in Citereup with nine production units has a production capacity of 11.9 million tons, the one in Palimanan with two production units has a production capacity of 4.1 million tons and the one in Tarjun has a production capacity of 2.6 million tons.(*)

Editor: Heru Purwanto
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