Sh4.9B cement plant set to be constructed in Athi River

Machakos County is set to add another Cement factory to its growing fold and indeed prove it is the place to be not only socially but business wise as well.

A $48m (Sh4.9b) cement plant is set to be constructed in Athi River, Machakos County after a consortium of local quarry operators and institutional investors applied to the environmental agency for permission.

Currently, six cement factories namely Bamburi, Savannah, National Cement, East African Portland Cement Company Ltd and Mombasa Cement are based in Athi River.

The proposed plant under the brand name Premier Cement will take 18 months for construction to be complete once it receives approval.

Public Relations Manager, Mr. George Wambugu confirmed the reports and said that the group was waiting for confirmation from National Environment Management Authority (Nema) before making payments for the importation of the machinery.

“Clinker, a key ingredient in cement making, will be imported and transported via the standard gauge railway while pozzolana and gypsum will be locally sourced, creating new revenue streams for quarry owners,” Mr Wambugu said.

Over the years, Machakos County has caught Investor's eye due to its proximity to Kenya's capital and low cost of doing business proving an ideal location for setting up factories.

Regulatory filings in the Kenya Gazette reveal that Global Choice Ltd, a wholly owned Kenyan joint venture between individual and institutional investors has finalized plans to build a grinding plant with an annual cement production capacity of one million metric tonnes.

The cement grinding plant will apply the roller-press technology to produce 3,000 tonnes of cement a day.

Mr. Wambugu said they expect to break ground on its newly acquired parcel of land at Athi River early next month.

Nema has invited written comments and oral submissions from the public within the next 30 days to enable them to determine whether the new factory should be set up in the region.

The plant is targeting the local and East African market.