2004 annual results and outlook for 2005 holcim ltd

Key facts at a glanceƒ Construction activity strong – even buoyant in some places ƒ Solid internal growth in all Group regions/segments ƒ Further increase in operating profit and Group n

2004 annual results and outlook for 2005

Key facts at a glance

ƒ Construction activity strong – even buoyant in some places

ƒ Solid internal growth in all Group regions/segments

ƒ Further increase in operating profit and Group net income

ƒ Higher earnings per share

ƒ Renewed proposal for dividend increase

ƒ 2004 capital increase allowed buyout of minority shareholders

ƒ Upswing in construction activity

ƒ Housebuilding and infrastructure support economic growth

ƒ Rising demand above all in Spain

and Italy

ƒ EU expansion stimulates growth in

eastern and southeastern Europe

Operations in Europe

Cement plant Grinding plant Terminal

Participation:

Cement plant

Cement capacity Group (Europe): 45.3 million t; further 1.0 million t with partners

Facts on Europe

ƒ Stronger presence in key markets ensuring rise in volumes

across all segments

ƒ In western Europe very sound results achieved in Spain,

Italy and Switzerland

ƒ Slight price recovery in Germany

Europe

ƒ Practically all Group companies posted higher operating results

ƒ In Europe consolidated operating profit was up by 37.3 percent

to CHF 662 million

North America

ƒ Strong increase in private

residential and industrial construction

ƒ Capacity of US cement industry fully utilized

Operations in North America

Cement plant Grinding station Terminal

Cement plant (project)

Cement capacity Group (North America): 22.0 million t

Facts on North America

ƒ Capacity considerations prompted concentration on key

customers

ƒ In Canada deliveries were up in all segments

ƒ St Lawrence Cement’s sales down marginally in the northeast of

ƒ Rising oil revenues

ƒ Building activity shored up by housing construction and

infrastructure improvement projects

Operations in Latin America

Facts on Latin America

ƒ Cement sales lifted in all segments

and Central America

ƒ Strong sales increases in Argentina, Ecuador, Venezuela and Colombia

ƒ Holcim Apasco again the main contributor to the Group’s

success in Latin America

ƒ Holcim Brazil was unable to repeat the previous year’s result due to demand and price developments

ƒ Programs to increase efficiency and strict cost control paid off

ƒ In Latin America operating profit saw an increase in local

currency of 2.3 percent

Africa Middle East

ƒ Construction sector generally solid

Operations in Africa Middle East

Cement plant Grinding station Terminal

Cement plant (project)

Participation:

Grinding station

Cement capacity Group (Africa Middle East): 14.9 million t; further 4.6 million t with partners

Facts on Africa Middle East

ƒ All Group companies registered higher sales volumes

ƒ Holcim Lebanon posted a sizable increase in deliveries of

cement due to a pick-up in exports

ƒ Dam construction work and exports supported sales at Egyptian Cement

ƒ Holcim South Africa saw substantial sales growth in all segments

ƒ Better market prices and high productivity bolstered local results

ƒ Practically all Group companies improved operating results

ƒ In Africa Middle East operating profit grew by 28.9 percent to

CHF 370 million

Asia Pacific

ƒ Accelerated growth

ƒ Strong economic upswing in

Thailand and Vietnam

ƒ Major local projects and residential construction stimulated demand for cement

Operations in Asia Pacific

Facts on Asia Pacific

ƒ Sales up significantly

ƒ Growth in cement delivery volumes highest in Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and New Zealand

ƒ Strong rise in ready-mix concrete sales

ƒ Prices picked up on the Philippines

ƒ Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam, Australia and New Zealand made significant contributions to operating result

ƒ Consolidated operating profit increased by 10.6 percent to

CHF 219 million in Group region Asia Pacific

Committed to sustainability

ƒ Holcim included in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index and

the FTSE4Good Index

ƒ ISO certification for quality and environment completed

Zurich organized international forum

ƒ Foundation also launched global competition for sustainable building projects

ƒ We provided immediate help after tsunami disaster

Key strategic expansion moves

ƒ In mature markets Holcim aims to operate increasingly as an

integrated supplier of building materials

ƒ Reserves of raw materials and aggregates gaining in

significance

ƒ Aggregate Industries expands our product range in the USA and gives us access to the attractive UK aggregates market

ƒ In the cement sector Holcim is focusing on growth markets

ƒ With a capacity of 20 million tonnes of cement Holcim would be India’s second largest supplier of cement

Market maturity defines investment focus

Added value through

business integration

Market maturity

Emerging markets Transition markets Mature markets

Key financial figures

in CHF in loc curr.

Group net income

Cash flow from

Major changes in the scope of consolidation

capacity

+ Proportionate consolidation of Cement

Australia (integration of Queensland Cement) June 1, 2003 not significant

+ Cemento de El Salvador, El Salvador December 31, 2004 1.7 million t

+/– Various smaller companies

1 African Basket (EGP, ZAR, MAD) 1 0.97 1.00 1.02 2.0%

1 Asian Basket (AUD, NZD, THB, PHP) 1 1.06 1.00 0.98 -2.0%

Balance sheet

exchange rates in CHF 31.12.02 31.12.03 31.12.04 +/-

1 EUR 1.45 1.56 1.55 -0.6%

1 USD 1.39 1.24 1.14 -8.1%

1 African Basket (EGP, ZAR, MAD) 1 0.99 1.00 1.05 5.0%

1 Asian Basket (AUD, NZD, THB, PHP) 1 0.99 1.00 0.95 -5.0%

Currency exposure and sensitivity

CHF 5%

Group net income after minority interests 914 911 -3

Cash flow from operating activities 2'622 2'613 -9

Other 31%

EUR 23%

USD 42%

CHF 4%

Cement and clinker sales volumes by region

2003 2004

30.8 26.5

25.3

17.5 17.2

16.5

20.6 19.3

18.8

14.0 12.8

11.7

25.8 23.2

22.9

104.2 95.9

92.1

Sales volumes aggregates and ready-mix concrete

Aggregates sales in million t

Ready-mix concrete sales in million m 3

13'215 12'600

Net sales by region

Million CHF

∆ 2003/2004 Volume/

price

Change in structure

Currency Total

North America 8.9% 1.0% -5.0% 4.9% Latin America 5.5% 0.4% -7.9% -2.0% Africa Middle East 22.2% 1.2% -3.1% 20.3% Asia Pacific 15.0% 0.6% -5.1% 10.5%

4744 4441

4320

2002 2003 2004

2630 2507

2755

2785 2842

3248

1540 1280

1136

1945 1760

1714

Net sales by region

Sales 2004

Africa Middle East 11%

Asia Pacific 14%

Europe 36%

North America 19%

Latin America 20%

3'588 3'311

3'619 3'383

2'251 1'925

Operating profit by region

Million CHF

∆ 2003/2004 Volume/

price/cost

Change in structure

Currency Total

North America 24.5% 1.1% -6.6% 19.0% Latin America 2.2% 0.1% -7.9% -5.6% Africa Middle East 29.0% 1.0% -1.1% 28.9% Asia Pacific 20.8% -5.6% -4.6% 10.6%

723 766

785

2002 2003 2004

325 273

298

662

482 504

370 287

198 163

Group net income

Before minority interests in million CHF

After minority interests in million CHF

2'622 2'619

Cash flow statement

+/-Cash flow from operating activities 2'388 2'619 2'622 0.1%

Net investments to maintain productive

capacity and to secure competitiveness -843 -802 -755 -5.9%

+/-Financing (requirement) surplus 533 517 -172 -133.3%

In(De)crease in financing liabilities 334 -676 74

In(De)crease in cash and

Financial position

10'708 9'499

9'435

6'810

8'299 8'857

Funds from operations/

Net financial debt (%) 26.4 28.6 38.1 > 25 EBITDA net interest coverage 5.9 6.8 7.2 > 5 EBIT net interest coverage 3.2 3.9 4.3 > 3

Financial indicators

Outlook 2005

ƒ Further progress thanks to efficiency gains in all areas

ƒ Energy costs at the upper limit of the bandwidth of 8 to 10

percent of Group sales

ƒ Internal operating EBITDA growth again to exceed longer

term average of 5 percent

ƒ The announced takeovers will lead to additional substantial

increases in results

Contact information and event calendar

August 25, 2005 Half-year results 2005

November 9, 2005 Third quarter results 2005

Conferences for press and analysts March 1, 2006 Annual results 2005

Conferences for press and analysts