Hanil Cement Diversifies Revenue with Specialty Cement "HI-CEM," Reinforces No. 1 Position in Domestic Shipments

Strengthens Sales Network for Four HI-CEM Products; Trademark Registered
Domestic Cement Shipments Expected to Rise 2%

Hanil Cement has established a strategy to diversify its revenue sources through specialty and high-value-added cement. The company aims to use this strategy to solidify its position as the No. 1 player in domestic shipments.

A view of Hanil Cement's production plant in Danyang, North Chungcheong Province. Hanil Cement

According to industry sources on October 14, Hanil Cement recently finalized plans to enhance corporate and shareholder value as part of its corporate value enhancement plan. The measures include diversifying revenue sources by focusing on four specialty cement products under the HI-CEM brand, raising the shareholder return ratio to at least 40%, and paying a minimum dividend of 1,000 won.

Hanil Cement has strengthened its sales infrastructure, including by establishing a dedicated specialty cement sales team. It has also completed investment in production facilities for specialty cement at its Danyang plant. In early August, the company completed trademark registration for the HI-CEM brand.

HI-CEM comprises four products: HI-CEM H, a high-early-strength cement for use at construction sites in winter; HI-CEM S, a slag cement that uses slag, a byproduct of steelmaking, to develop early strength; HI-CEM M, a masonry cement specially designed for manufacturing secondary products such as mortar; and HI-CEM L, a low-heat cement that generates less heat during curing and is optimized for roads and bridges.

Hanil Cement said, "With demand for Type I Portland cement weakening amid the construction downturn, we are responding to growth in the specialty cement market, which addresses the construction industry's diverse needs."

Despite the prolonged construction downturn, Hanil Cement's revenue in the first half of this year rose 33.18% year over year to KRW 624.5 billion. Operating profit increased 35.53% to KRW 84.3 billion. Hanil Cement is considered to have high business stability because its portfolio is diversified across ready-mixed concrete, which is used in the early stages of construction, and Remitar, which is mainly used in later stages, and because it consumes much of its raw materials in-house. In addition, environmental facility investments that have been underway for the past three years are being completed in stages, and spending on facility investments is expected to decline starting next year. The sale of the site of its ready-mixed concrete plant in Deokpo-dong, Sasang-gu, Busan, was completed in August, securing KRW 75 billion in proceeds.

Domestic cement shipments also appear to have bottomed out and begun to rebound. Domestic cement shipments this year are expected to reach approximately 38.5 million to 39 million tons, up about 1% to 2% from last year, when they hit their lowest level in 34 years. In the first half, domestic cement shipments totaled 19.1 million tons, up 2.0% year over year. The increase was driven by greater demand for cold-resistant concrete at construction sites during winter, as well as rising demand for social overhead capital (SOC) projects, including Jinhae New Port.

According to the Bank of Korea, construction orders received in the first half of this year rebounded sharply, rising 25.6% from the same period last year. The increase reflected a base effect following a drought in construction orders in the second half of last year, as well as increased orders, primarily for industrial facilities such as semiconductor plants. According to the Construction and Economy Research Institute of Korea, as of July, construction orders were up 15.8%, while the permitted and commenced floor areas increased 1.4% and 4.5%, respectively, on a cumulative basis.

Hanil Cement said, "Cement demand has not yet entered a full-fledged recovery phase, in part because the recovery in housing supply has been delayed, but we expect gradual improvement to continue."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.