10 May 2014, Sweetcrude, Abuja – The Chief Executive Officer at Dangote Cement Plc, Mr. Devakumar Edwin has said the pan-African cement giant plans to start operations in three African countries, namely Sierra Leone, Cameroon and Zambia this year.
The Lagos-based company, which has a production capacity totalling 20.3 million tons in Nigeria, also intends to add nine million tons to production in Africa’s largest economy by the end of this year.
According to Edwin, Dangote Cement, Africa’s largest cement maker is currently reviewing its operations in Kenya, in light of the discovery of limestone deposits in the East African country. The company plans to increase its proposed factory in Kenya from 1.5 to 3.0m tpa.
“In Ethiopia, work is well underway, to build 2.5m mtpa plant at Mugher with production expected late in 2014. In Tanzania, we have begun work on a 3m mtpa plant at Mtwara and would be fully operational in 2015. In Zambia, work is underway on a 1.5m mtpa at Ndola with cement production expected in second half of 2014,” he explained in an investor conference call.
He further explained that the bid to expand is part of the company’s longer-term expansion strategy across the continent.
The company, owned by Africa’s richest man Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has three plants in Nigeria and plans to expand into 13 other African nations, bringing total capacity to more than 60 million tons by 2016.
Edwin however said that the company is stalling its business plan in South Sudan “because of military conflict in that nation.”
Dangote Cement is Africa’s biggest cement producer. The company recorded a turnover of N386.2 billion ($2.3 billion) in the 2013 financial year, up 29.4 percent from N298 billion ($1.8 billion) in 2012.
Profit before tax stood at N191 billion compared with N135 billion ($836 million), while profit after tax rose to N201.2 billion –a 38.73 percent increase when compared to N145.02bn ($899 million) recorded in the same period the previous year.
