Uzbekistan, Tashkent, July 5 / Trend D. Azizov /
Control over Uzbek cement plant, Bekabadcement, was transferred from an industrial holding United Cement Group (UCG, Kazakhstan) to the Uzbek State Committee for State Property Management.
"The Supervisory Board of Bekabadcement has decided to include in the register of shareholders of Uzbekistan State Property Committee, which holds 51.53 percent stake," the report said.
The reason for this decision was the ruling of Tashkent Province Court for Criminal Cases.
In January 2012 the court sentenced a number of Bekabadcement heads to long terms of imprisonment for financial and tax violations. Due to the significant damage to the state, shares of Bekabadcement owned by UCG, according to the court, are transferred to the State Property Committee, a source in Uzbek Building Materials JSC which includes Bekabadcement, told Trend on Thursday.
The source said that UCG sent to the Uzbek Building Materials an official letter stating that it intends to appeal the decision of the court in Tashkent, and is considering filing a lawsuit in international court.
Pbekabadcement, one of the oldest cement industry enterprises of Uzbekistan, was commissioned in 1926. Currently, the design capacity for the production of cement - 818,000 tons, clinker - 654,000 tons per year. UCG acquired a controlling stake in the plant in January 2006. At the same the holding bought a controlling stake in another cement plant in Uzbekistan - Kuvasaycement JSC with design capacity of cement production - 1.107 million tons, clinker - 886,000 tons per year.
Uzbekistan currently has six cement plants with total installed capacity of around seven million tons. The largest ones are Kizilkumcement (3.15 million tons), Ahangarancement (1.74 million tons) and Kuvasaycement (1.107 million tons).
According to official statistics, in 2011, cement production in Uzbekistan decreased by 1.5 percent compared with 2010 - to 6.698 million tons.
