Savannah Cement has unveiled plans to increase its Athi River plant to 2.4Mta, almost doubling its current 1.5Mta capacity, Business Daily Africa reports.
The firm says it expects the new capacity to come online by mid-2018, with the tendering process to begin in early 2017 as soon as regulatory clearance is received. The project will see the creation of a new grinding and packaging plant.
Kenyan cement consumption has risen rapidly in recent years and the country’s producers have responded by investing in new capacity. Bamburi Cement – the largest – is planning to upgrade its own Athi River facility to 2.3Mta.
In total, Kenya has around 8.9Mta of installed capacity and produced 6.5Mt of cement in 2015. Analysts AIB Capital have said that housing has been the main driver of demand, although rising infrastructure investment has also begun to make itself felt.
