Sudan reached self-sufficiency in cement production last year, and the African country plans to export extra production, Industry Minister Awad Ahmed al-Jazz said today in an interview.

Sudan produced about 3Mt of cement in 2010, and it expects to produce as much as 5Mt this year, al-Jazz said in Omdurman, a suburb of Khartoum, the capital.

Excess production will be exported “to anyone who wants to buy,” al-Jazz said.

Sudan had only two cement plants until the end of 2009 with a combined annual capacity of 1Mt, former Industry Minister Ali Ahmed Osman said in February last year. The country previously relied on imports to fill a gap of 2Mt between supply and demand.

The government is trying to reduce imports and make its economy less reliant on oil production. (Edited report from Bloomberg).