Lake Asphalt’s big
pitch Small state enterprise is a dynamic player
in global market
The Trinidad Guardian
Petroleumworldtt.com
03 30 08
It
might be the smallest state enterprise in T&T,
but Lake Asphalt Company of T&T Ltd (LATT)
has established itself as a big player in the global
market.
The
company—which is set to surpass in 2007
the record profit it achieved in 2006—is
spreading its asphaltic tentacles into Brazil,
India and Africa as it seeks at the same time to
re-establish and consolidate its markets in North
America.
With 400 years of guaranteed raw material from
the La Brea Pitch Lake, combined with its technology
to pelletise the asphalt and growing demand for
the product, CEO Wayne Woods assures that LATT
is progressing to world-class status.
Energy
Minister Conrad Enill, who toured the company’s
La Brea facilities two weeks ago, agreed that the
company is in transformation.
“I believe that the kinds of investment
we are making with this particular company, is
very consistent with what we are doing as a country
in terms of making sure we can compete on the global
market,” Enill said.
In 2004, LATT established itself as a pioneer
in pelletisation technology, when it added a plant
at a cost of $25 million to transform the sticky
black substance into a more user-friendly product.
The plant was commissioned in September 2007.
It produces white-coated pellets measuring six
to nine mm in diameter (the size of a pill).
Since January, the plant has been down for routine
maintenance and improvements. However, with over
6,000 tonnes of asphalt in stock, LATT has been
able to continue to service its markets while upgrading
the plant.
Woods
said the $3.2 million spent to improve its operations
and capacity for storage came from the
company’s own reserves.
In 2006, LATT recorded the highest turnover ($109
million) and profit ($11 million) in its 29-year
history. The figures for 2007 have not yet been
made public.
“So
there is some cash in the kitty, and we are utilising
that cash in upgrading the facility.”
The
plant is scheduled to reopen on March 31, when
Woods said, “our expected volume to
China is expected to surpass the 32,000 tonnes
we exported in 2007.”
China,
LATT’s biggest customer, is using
Trinidad Lake Asphalt (TLA) in preparation for
the Beijing Olympics set for August 8.
“TLA
is being used in the Olympic Village and on some
of the main streets. As that is happening,
there is also preparation for the Asian games in
Southern China. So the Chinese market this year
is expected to be in the vicinity of 45,000 tonnes
and about 50,000 in the next year.”
In April, LATT will deliver its second shipment
to Nigeria and India. A shipment is scheduled to
be dispatched to Brazil later in the year.
“So we would want to ensure, as we begin
those efforts in the international market, our
plant reliability and plant capability to deliver
to customers what they require in terms of TLA,
bitumen and bitumen emulsion products,” Woods
said.
The global demand for asphalt is projected to
increase by 2.3 per cent annually over the next
few years.
The
CEO also noted that the pelletisation process
has positioned LATT as a prominent player in the
global asphalt industry. He said natural asphalt
producers in other parts of the world such as USA,
China, Angola, Nigeria, and Indonesia have all
expressed interest in utilising LATT’s technology
to commercialise their reserves.
“So TLA has reserves that can last. We have
the technology that is saleable and we have the
expertise to lend assistance and exchange with
our partners internationally to develop their own
reserves,” Woods said.
Speaking
about recent claims of the “discovery
of a pitch lake” in Penal/Debe, Woods said
the company had not yet evaluated those claims.
For
the time being he said, “The only reserve
of quality asphalt in T&T is at the Pitch Lake
in La Brea.”
In 2006, LATT recorded the highest turnover ($109
million) and profit ($11 million) in its 29-year history.
Story by Yvonne
Webb from
The Trinidad Guardian
The
Trinidad Guardian
Thursday 27th March, 2008
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