Elementia S.A.B. de C.V., a Mexican company led by magnate’s Carlos Slim and Antonio del Valle Ruiz, announced a US$17 million investment in a cement plant in Costa Rica.

The company plans to expand its cement business in Central America with new facilities whose operation will begin in the first half of 2018 under the Fortaleza by Plycem brand.

The new facilities will have a capacity to produce 250,000 tons, said the Mexico City-based company.

Elementia, which has three divisions, cement, building systems, and metals, said in a statement to the Mexican Stock Exchange (BMV) that the new investment will be financed with corporate equity.

“With this new plant, the company will be able to self-supply the main raw material used in the manufacture of its Plycem fiber cement products; creating a vertical integration between the company’s Cemento and Construsistemas divisions,” said the press release.

Elementia produces and sells building materials for the construction sector in the Americas. Its Cement division provides grey and white cement, mortar, and ready mix products under the Fortaleza, Keystone, Dragon, and Giant Cement brand names.

Carlos Slim Helú, born January 28, 1940, is a Mexican business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. From 2010 to 2013, Slim was ranked the richest person in the world. He derived his fortune from his extensive holdings in a considerable number of Mexican companies through his conglomerate, Grupo Carso. As of July 2017, he was #6 on Forbes’ listing of the world’s billionaires with a net estimated worth of over $67.9 billion.