The latest addition to the cement industry of Mali, the Astro cement works located at Gangoterie is expected to be fully up-and-running on 21 December.

The project, owned by Diamond Cement Mali (DCM), has a 1Mta cement capacity with a 0.5Mta clinkerisation unit installed at the village of Gangoterie, Bafoulabé, while grinding will take place at Ko-Gare in Kati, Koulikoro. The grinding facility has been operational since 8 June, when the first bag of cement with delivered clinker was produced. The plant was built with a combination of German and US technology.

The Minister of Trade and Industry, Abdul Kader Konaté, who visited the plant recently, said: "This jewel is our pride and all Malians benefit from this plant, not only in reducing costs of a bag of cement, but also in the quality of the plant, which is already considered a first in the sub-region not only in terms of efficiency but also for the incomparable quality of the materials used.”

It is expected that cement from the plant will be sold at CFA87,000/t. The new works is understood to be saving Mali around CFA100bn annually as it will reduce the need for cement imports considerably, currently costing the country some CFA200bn.