State renews its plan to revive flourspar factory

The government plans to jumpstart the revival of fluorspar factory in Elgeyo Marakwet that it reposed from a firm associated with the Nicholas Biwott family will take longer.

In an interview with Business Daily, the mining Principal Secretary Peter Kaberia said even though the government is committed to ensuring that the plant becomes operational, the market remains one of the biggest headaches.

Kenya Fluorspar Company, a mining firm that is associated with the Biwott family, failed to renew its lease in April 2018 due to depressed fluorspar prices in the international market, curtailing continued operations of the mine.

“The plan is going on because we have to do a number of things; this is a mining thing, you do not mine any mineral to keep, you mine to sell and that is what we are looking at the moment before we start mining again,” said Mr Kaberia.

He added that they are also working on how to put in place structures which will allow the investment to benefit the locals.

“Secondly, you need to establish the systems and structures of the mining and processes of value addition and then you also have to take into consideration issues of social capital from the locals,” he said.

“A lot is going on...it is only that it is not complete. Reviving it remains among our priorities and we will accomplish it.”

The revival of fluorspar mining activities has been an uphill task due a row between the government and the residents over compensation. Over 4,000 individuals displaced in the past rejected the government's Sh120,000 per acre offer.

The residents who spoke to the Business Daily accused the government for failing to compensate them as per the current land rates which they claimed to be Sh1 million per acre.