Mali: new integrated Astro Cement plant to produce first cement

Mali: new integrated Astro Cement plant to produce first cement
06 December 2012


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.

Published under Cement News