Cement price hike: No plans to increase price – BUA

BUA Cement, Nigeria's second-largest cement maker, has debunked claims that it plans to increase the price of cement.

BUA Cement, Nigeria’s second-largest cement maker, has debunked claims that it plans to increase the price of cement.

The company disclosed this in a statement on Sunday. This comes after reports that costs of building material have risen by over 60% in one year.

BUA revealed that the current supply levels of cement were not sufficient to meet the increased demand, adding that any increase would be paid by the customer at the retail end.

READ: BUA explains why price of cement, sugar remains high

“We are very much aware that there is a huge difference in the ex-factory prices of cement and the retail market prices of cement, which is mostly because of retailers taking advantage of increased cement demand to make maximum profits.

Timing is not right for any increase in the price of major commodities. There are no further arbitrary increases in the retail price of cement,” they stated.

READ: Dangote: Cement price from our factories is between N2,450 and N2,510 per bag, VAT inclusive

What you should know

Recall Nairametrics reported that the cost of cement, steel, tiles and plaster of Paris (PoP) cement, among others had risen by over 60% between March 2020 and March 2021.
Dangote Cement increased from N2,600 to N3,800 (though it is sold at N3,600 in some areas in Lagos), Lafarge Cement and BUA Cement increased from N2,400 and N2,250 to N3,600 and N3,250 respectively within the same period.
In the South-East states of Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo, prices of cement have risen by 67%.