EAPCC to source clinker supplies, Kenya
Delays in the construction of a new kiln line have forced the second- largest cement manufacturer in Kenya to put out a tender for the supply of clinker, an important ingredient in cement production.
East Africa Portland Cement Company (EAPCC) says it requires 140,000t during its 2010/11 financial year.
Last year, EAPCC embarked on the construction of a new clinker line that was intended to increase production capacity to about 900,000tpa. Its existing kiln, built in 1996, has a design capacity of about 450,000tpa.
Though the contractor was supposed to undertake the works “within the shortest time possible”, eight months down the line, the project is far from complete, says EAPCC MD John Nyambok.
EAPCC put out the tender soon after announcing a 200% increase in pretax profit for the half year ended December 31, 2009. Profit stood at US$5.7m, compared with a loss of US$6.5m for the corresponding period in 2008.
It also comes at a time when EAPCC is in the process of floating a convertible bond to raise funds for hedging a yen-dominated loan eating into its earnings. Published under Cement News
