Polpaico posts US$14mn 9mth. net profit

Chile's Cemento Polpaico posted an 8.77bn peso (US$14mn) net profit in the first nine months, versus a 8.45bn peso net loss in the same period last year, Polpaico said in a statement to the country's securities regulator, the SVS. For the period, a 10.6% revenue increase to 90.5bn pesos and lower costs helped operating profit jump 32% to 12.2bn pesos. Earlier this year, Polpaico said 2003 investment would reach some US$10mn to optimize processes and implement an alternative fuels project at Polpaico's Cerro Blanco plant, which would involve using industrial waste to fuel the plant's ovens. Cemento Polpaico, a subsidiary of Switzerland's Holcim, led first semester sales with a 36.7% market share, followed by Cementos Melon, controlled by France's Lafarge, with 35.4% and Cementos Bio Bio, controlled by Chile's Briones group, with 27.9%. Cement sales in Chile grew 5.7% in the first semester to 1.86Mt, compared to 1H02.