Present at Dien Bien Cement Factory (belonging to Dien Bien Cement Joint Stock Company - Pom Lot commune, Dien Bien district), Lao Dong Newspaper reporters recorded the scene of dozens of trucks lining up for many hours but still not having their turn to load goods.
Mr. Pham Ngoc Vang - a truck driver in Dien Bien Phu City said: "I have been at the factory since 3am and expected to wait until 3pm to get my turn to pick up the goods. There were times when the queue was so long that I had to drive back home."
According to some drivers waiting to pick up their goods here, cement is an indispensable material for construction projects. Meanwhile, currently in Dien Bien province, a series of large construction projects are being implemented, so cement is "selling like hotcakes".
“Even though we are impatient, we have to wait patiently. Dealers must get cement to provide to customers if they want to maintain their reputation,” said a driver.
According to driver Lo Van Thuat (Thanh Chan commune, Dien Bien district), each trip carrying 10 tons of cement, the owner will earn about 1 million VND. However, the situation of trucks having to queue up to get cement has occurred since around September 2024 due to high demand.
Mr. Nguyen Huu Son - Deputy Director of Dien Bien Cement Joint Stock Company said that it is common to see high demand for cement consumption in the last months of the year. Therefore, the company has prepared supply sources many months in advance.
"However, on December 19, a technical problem occurred at the factory, causing the production line to be interrupted. This is also part of the reason why the cement market in Dien Bien province has been scarce in recent days," said Mr. Son.
According to Mr. Son, the cement factory has basically fixed the problem and started running the production line again. It is expected that the factory will return to normal operation in the next 3-5 days. Currently, the company has mobilized nearly 270 staff, workers and laborers in the company to focus on production to soon supply enough cement to serve customers.
Currently, Dien Bien Cement Factory produces about 1,300 tons of cement per day. However, the high demand for cement at the end of the year, especially since October, along with the incident at the factory, has led to a shortage of cement in the Dien Bien market.
On January 3, 2025, according to a survey by PV at a number of cement dealers in Dien Bien Phu City, PCB 30 cement costs 1.45 million VND/ton; PCB 40 costs 1.5 million VND/ton. Meanwhile, at Dien Bien Cement Factory, PCB 30 cement costs 1.23 million VND/ton; PCB 40 costs 1.3 million VND/ton.
According to the assessment of the Deputy Director of Dien Bien Cement Joint Stock Company, although the demand for cement increased in the last months of the year, the consumption of cement in the whole year of 2024 tends to decrease. It is forecasted that in 2025, the demand for cement consumption may increase by 10% when many large construction works and projects are still being implemented in Dien Bien province.
