Savannah lines up new capacity investments

Savannah Cement, one of Kenya's newest market entrants, is set to build two new plants as it nears exhaustion of its current capacity, managing director, Ronald Ndegwa, said.

The company has previously said it is to invest around US$250m for a clinker plant  at its Athi River factory to reduce reliance on imported clinker. The 1.5Mta clinker facility will complement the existing 1.5Mta grinding unit. Mr Ndegwa said the company will also invest in a second mill to support existing operations.

"We see ourselves running out of headroom in two to three years at our current mill, hence the new investment. The clinkerisation plant will help use local limestone to make our clinker," Mr Ndegwa said in an interview with All Africa press.

Savannah recently revealed that it had secured contracts to supply cement to several projects such as the greenfield Terminal and the on-going Terminal 1A both at JKIA, Actis’s US$250m Garden City and Centum’s US$170m Two Rivers Project, according to Faida Investment Bank (Kenya).

Savannah Cement is a joint venture comprising Savannah Heights – a consortium of Kenyan investors (40 per cent), Wan Ho-a Chinese investor (40 per cent) and Catic Cement (Kenya) (20 per cent).