2012 Annual Report - Italcementi Group

Letter to the stakeholders
Consolidating our new future today
In 2012, expectations of a
turnaround in the negative
trend that has dominated the
construction industry since
2008 faded as the economic
situation worsened,
especially in Europe, and in
some cases moved into a
recessionary phase, with the
result that tangible
indications of a recovery are
now only expected to
emerge in the near future.
This meant that the scenario
in which our Group operated
last year was split between
more favorable conditions on
Giampiero and Carlo Pesenti (on the right)
the emerging markets, where
most of our production capacity is located, and a more difficult market in the European
countries worst hit by the effects of the crisis.
The Italian market, historically one of the most important in Europe, continues to present
surplus production capacity with respect to a state of demand that has now fallen to levels on a
par with the end of the 1960s. Given these new conditions, and the likelihood that a return to
the high levels of the pre-crisis period is no longer possible, we have taken steps to rationalize
our domestic industrial and distribution organization, but without cutting our market share. The
chief goal of the ‘Project 2015’ program launched by Italcementi is to raise industrial and
environmental efficiency through important investments to revamp the Rezzato cement plant
(Brescia) after the measures taken in recent years in Calusco (Bergamo) and Matera.
Together with the steps being taken to raise the utilization rate of our industrial facilities, further
measures will be introduced under the plan to cut overheads, with regard to our central units
and the sales network. In addition to rigorous control of its financial operations, the Group will
continue its policy to keep net debt within the prudent limits that have always been one of the
company’s distinguishing features.
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