Loma Negra

Loma Negra is Argentina's largest cement manufacturer, commanding roughly half of the national market. Founded in 1926 by Alfredo Fortabat following the discovery of limestone deposits near Olavarria in Buenos Aires Province, the company produces cement, Portland cement, ready-mix concrete, lime, and masonry cement under brands including Plasticor. Loma Negra operates production plants in Olavarria, Barker, San Juan, Zapala, and Catamarca, giving it a nationwide manufacturing footprint. Listed on both the Buenos Aires Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange, the company is currently a subsidiary of InterCement, part of the Brazilian Mover Participacoes group.

The discovery of large limestone deposits by Alfredo Fortabat at his San Jacinto Estancia in 1926 led to the establishment of a cement factory in the nearby pampas hamlet of Loma Negra, south of Olavarria. The cement plant was built in 1927, and by the early 1950s this facility and a second one in nearby Barker produced 500,000 tons of cement annually. New facilities in the Andean cities of San Juan and Zapala, opened during the 1960s, made Loma Negra the leader in cement and concrete production in Argentina. In the 1980s, the company opened its first Portland cement facility in Catamarca. After the founder's death in 1976, his widow Maria Amalia Lacroze de Fortabat became the company's majority stakeholder and president. Under her leadership, Loma Negra acquired the privatized Ferrosur Roca railway line and competitor Cementos San Martin in 1992, consolidated its logistics network, and diversified into recycling with its Recycomb plant in 1995. The acquisition of five concrete producers in 1998-99 made the company the national leader in ready-mix concrete. The Loma Negra Technical Center, opened in 1999, remains the only facility of its type in Latin America. In 2005, the company was acquired by Brazilian conglomerate Camargo Correa (now Mover Participacoes) for over US$1 billion. Today, Loma Negra employs approximately 3,200 people and continues to be the dominant force in Argentina's cement and construction materials market.