Housing Agency to decide on cement procurement, Ethiopia
The Addis Abeba Housing Agency, which collected proof of purchase from international companies for the supply of cement in its construction of 65,000 houses, said it will reach its decision this week.
A committee composed of three members from Mugher Cement Factory, Addis Engineering Plc, and the agency itself was established a month ago to find the right mechanism for the agency to acquire cement for its housing project.
The committee has gathered proof of purchase from six Chinese and Japan companies, including the Japanese Maruben, to find the option that is most cost effective from importing finished cement to importing clinker from abroad and grinding at the Mugher Cement Factory, Addis Abeba Branch.
According to one of the committee members, the committee was supposed to submit the result of the survey two weeks ago.
The source said that the reason for the delay was that the companies approached were late and are were only expected to submit their proofs of purchase this week.
The source said the agency needs 100,000t of cement for the first phase of the construction. If the committee decides to import cement from abroad, it will take 100,000t of cement in advance from Mugher. The agency has reached an agreement with Mugher in this regard, he said, and that Mugher will take the imported cement once it comes into the country.
Mugher is the largest producer of cement in the country producing 900,000tn a year. Including Mossobe’s 700,000tns and Dire Dawa’s 75,000tn yearly production, the country’s total annual production stands at 1.6Mt, while the demand is 2.4MT.
Since September 2005, when the shortage of cement greatly impeded the construction industry, the government has allowed the importation of cement. As a result, MIDROC Ethiopia has been making arrangements to import.
Published under Cement News
