Director Hasmukh Patel said the planned expansion of the Athi River grinding plant will enable the firm meet the growing domestic demand.
He said the new facility will produce Portland Pozzolana Cement (PPC) and Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) that will be bagged in 50 kilogramme bags as well as packaged via an overhead chute into cement tankers for onward delivery to large consumers.
Mombasa Cement has unveiled plans to double annual production volume to 3.2 million metric tonnes, making it the latest manufacturer to crank up capacity despite the recent cooling off of the construction sector.
Director Hasmukh Patel said the planned expansion of the Athi River grinding plant will enable the firm meet the growing domestic demand.
The demand stood at 6.3 million metric tonnes in December 2016 against a production of 6.7 million metric tonnes—meaning the industry is operating in excess capacity.
Mr Patel’s request for expansion is contained in regulatory findings at the environmental agency. He said the new facility will produce Portland Pozzolana Cement (PPC) and Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) that will be bagged in 50 kilogramme bags as well as packaged via an overhead chute into cement tankers for onward delivery to large consumers.
The firm, which is the second largest cement maker after Bamburi Cement #ticker:BAMB, said the new facility will comprise a cement grinding mill, go-downs and clinker stock pile, two cement storage silos, a packaging plant and bulk cement loading.
Mr Patel said the new development will see them employ more people with the county national governments enjoying higher revenues drawn from higher sales of cement in the East African region.
Mombasa Cement owns a clinkering plant in Vipingo, Mombasa—which last year announced plan to triple daily capacity to 9,000 tonnes—and is a sister company to Tororo Cement of Uganda.
The firm is associated with several manufacturing units on Mombasa Road including Corrugated Sheets.
Other companies expanding facilities include Bamburi Cement who have announced plans to expand production capacity by 900,000 tonnes bringing installed capacity to 3.2 million by June 2018.
Savannah Cement is expanding to 2.4 million tonnes while Devki Group plans to put up two new cement plants in Kilifi and Nakuru with a total capacity of 1.5 million tonnes.
Global Choice Ltd has also sought a nod to construct a million metric tonnes cement factory in Athi River while Kassim and Sons Ltd is putting up a 700,000 metric tonnes capacity plant in Athi River.
Athi River, Machakos already plays host to Bamburi, ARM Cement, Savannah, National Cement, EA Portland Ltd and Mombasa Cement.
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