Overview
In Spain, CEMEX is the cement industry leader. Its eight cement plants, 114 ready-mix facilities, and 27 land and marine terminals serve the central, Cataluña, Aragón, and Levante regions, as well as the Baleares and Canarias Islands. Our geographic diversification, extensive distribution channels, and ability to shift production to meet demand allow us to cope with regional downturns in demand more effectively than our competitors.

User Base
The Spanish cement market is Europe's largest. Cement is the most commonly used building material in housing construction and is popular in nonresidential construction. In 2007 the main drivers of cement demand were the non-residential and infrastructure construction sectors.

The company offers various types of cement, tailoring its products for specific markets and users. Approximately 13 percent of the company's Spanish cement sales volume is sold in bags through distributors, and the remainder is sold in bulk primarily to ready-mix concrete operators, which include industrial customers and construction companies.

Value Initiatives
Over the last few years, we have launched a number of successful customer-service initiatives in Spain. For example, with our ATM-like unattended bulk cement dispatch system, customers reap the benefits of 24-hour self-service such as increased loading flexibility, shortened loading times, and reduced paper work.

Also, we have improved the profitability of our Spanish operations by introducing technological improvements that have significantly reduced our energy costs. In Spain, all of CEMEX's cement plants run on a more cost-effective mix of fuels, including alternative fuels such as meal flour, organic waste, and tires.