Lagos — Hard times await cartels in the cement industry who want to maintain monopoly in the sector as President Umar Yar'adua wants importation license open to all to bring down price from N2, 000 per bag to N1, 000, a source in the Presidency has said.

The source said that a group of local manufacturers have petitioned the president not to liberalise the supply chain of the product or give licenses to importers outside their group.

Some companies were licensed about a year ago to import cement but were frustrated by the cartels. The companies are: Minaj Holdings Ltd Enugu, Made Well Products Sapele, BUA International Ltd Kano, NICA Ltd Maiduguri, Reagan Renaissance Ltd Calabar and MAAN Lababidi (Zane Cement Co), Lagos.

Yar'adua is said to be thinking of applying similar strategy he applied in the downstream sector of the oil industry to alleviate the pains Nigerians are facing because of the hike in the price of cement.

The source said: "President Yar'Adua has begun a process of dismantling the cartel because they are frustrating his effort in mass housing by keeping the price of cement above the reach of many Nigerians. We want to do what he did in the downstream sector of the oil industry.

"Some local manufacturers are demanding that they manage the importation process and that any license to anybody to import cement should come with a proviso to set up a cement manufacturing industry in the country.

"They are complaining that if they grant licenses to people to import cement to the country, their factories will close shop and it will be a big blow to their massive investments, hence their protest against the liberalization initiative.

"President Yar'Adua has accordingly directed the Minister of Finance, Dr. Mansur Muhtar to set up a committee to look at the local cement manufactures' concerns, considering the short, medium and long term goals to boost local production in order to make the product available and affordable."

The cartel have made it impossible to meet the N1000 per bag target since 2007 According to statistics, domestic production of cement is 9 million metric tons, compared to about 16 - 18 million metric tons the country requires. Because demands outweigh supply, the average price for a bag of cement is about N2000.

The Special Assistant to the Finance Minister on Communications, Ms. Deborah Okafor, said the Minister of Commerce and Industry, Chief Achike is a member of the Committee. She said the committee has visited some cement factories in the country to assess the level of their investment and production.

Ms. Okafor said the Finance Minister, Dr. Mansur Muktar is ready to implement measures that can mitigate the sufferings of Nigerians.