Bahrain-based Cemena Holding Company, a leader in building materials, has outlined plans to expand its business to the region during it annual general meeting.

The meeting focused on Cemena's profitability, returns and plans to diversify its business to become one of the leading building materials companies in the region.

Shareholders were updated on Cemena's activities and financial performance for 2011 and the milestones reached during the year.

The company, which was set up in 2008 by Gulf Finance House, also highlighted its new business strategy and hailed efforts of the management in achieving gross revenues of $46.4 million last year.

Shareholders were also updated on the planned expansion of Falcon Cement Company's (FCC) production capacity, bringing it up to 3,500 tonnes in the near future.

FCC is Bahrain's first integrated cement plant, established by Cemena in 2007.

The expansion of FCC will help the company meet Bahrain's growing demand for cement with the increasing number of infrastructure projects.

In addition, the shareholders were updated on the progress made on the expansion phase of Bahrain Aluminium Extrusion Company (Balexco), in which Cemena has a controlling stake. The project is expected to be completed and operations commenced this year.

'With the return of the growing demand for cement and building materials locally and in the region, Cemena successfully closed 2011 in profit,' Cemena chairman Hisham Alrayes said.

'This is a result of the tireless efforts of the team, and the trust and confidence our shareholders have in our vision.

'With the expansion plans in place for FCC, the completion of the expansion phase of Balexco and Libya stabilising for us to progress on our Libya Cement Plant, we are confident that we now have a strong platform for growth and expect to witness another strong cash flow performance this year.

'Cemena is well-positioned to support future growth objectives, both organically and through additional acquisitions and expansions.'

Cemena chief executive Salah Sharif said 2011 was a difficult but consistent year for the company.

'Our positive results defied the cement industry's negative trend in 2011 due to our team's dedication and hard work, as well as our shareholders' continuous guidance and support.

'The expanded capacities at FCC and the Balexco project's completion will enable us to better meet the rising demand for building materials in Bahrain, while further diversifying our business activities into the building materials segment of the market,' said Sharif. – TradeArabia News Service