U.S.-Brazilian Joint Venture Expands Cement and Construction Material Presence in Florida

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas). Anderson Columbia Company, Incorporated (Lake City, Florida) and Votorantim Cimentos North America, Incorporated (Jacksonville, Florida), a subsidiary of Votorantim Cimentos (Sao Paulo, Brazil), are continuing a growth initiative for cement and construction materials in Florida with recently announced plans to construct a new cement import terminal and expand cement manufacturing capacity.

The first project to reach the construction phase will be a new limestone aggregate and cement import terminal that is scheduled to be built at the Port of Tampa. With its technical expertise, Votorantim is taking the lead for engineering and constructing new facilities for the joint venture. Trinity Materials, LLC (Jacksonville, Florida), a joint venture between Votorantim and Anderson Columbia Company, Incorporated (Lake City, Florida), will own and operate the terminal. Late last year, Trinity Materials was formed as a holding company for Anderson Columbia’s subsidiaries including Anderson Materials and Tallahassee Redi-Mix.

The company will lease property at the Port of Tampa and is permitting and designing the facility with the assistance of consulting engineers EDG, Incorporated (Houston, Texas). The $25 million terminal will be constructed in two phases. The first phase will involve construction of limestone aggregate stockpiling and distribution systems for truck and rail loading. The second phase will involve the addition of a cement storage dome and a pneumatic system for conveying and distributing cement. Construction for the first phase could start during the fourth quarter of 2006. Once operational, the terminal is expected to receive 1-3 million tons per year of aggregate and cement. This will greatly aid construction activities in Florida and will complement Trinity Materials’ other construction materials plants and mines in the area.

The two companies’ other operational joint venture, Suwannee American Cement, began operations in 2003, and is planning an expansion to double plant capacity from 750,000 tons per year up to 1.5 million tons per year. See related news article - Votorantim Cimentos Has Big Plans for Recently Acquired North American Cement Manufacturing Operations

In addition, the two companies are developing a new large-scale, 1.7 million-ton per year cement manufacturing plant in Sumter County, Florida. To be known as Sumter Cement Company, LLC, the company is fighting legal land use issues, which could delay construction for up to a year. Sumter Cement received environmental permit approval earlier this year and now only needs one other minor permit. In addition to the land use issue, the project must also receive approval from Votorantim’s Board of Directors. Design studies are ongoing and Votorantim is starting to review equipment pricing from vendors such as Polysius (Atlanta, Georgia). Construction on Sumter Cement is now being targeted for 2007.

Sumter Cement is one of a number of new cement plants and expansions of existing cement manufacturing plants being planned for Florida. For a complete listing of projects see related September 22, 2005 news article titled - Florida Explodes with Well Needed Cement Manufacturing Project Activity

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