Khayah Cement plans US$15 million plant renovation

New Ziana – In a move expected to increase cement raw material supply, Khayah Cement on Wednesday said it will soon embark on a US$15 million refurbishment of its Kiln plant that produces clinker, a key ingredient for cement production.

In 2023, Khayah Cement, formerly Lafarge, commissioned a new million-dollar Vertical Cement Mill which boosted the company’s milling capacity to one million tonnes, bolstering its ability to supply high-strength cement of improved quality at a lower cost.

Speaking to journalists who were on a tour of its plants, Khaya Cement chief executive Innocent Chikwata said the Kiln plant stopped working.

“So, with the history that you know, last year we had some issues in the cement industry. Part of what affected us as Khaya Cement was this piece of equipment which is called the Kiln. We had to make a decision to come to a point where we stopped it because of unreliability and so on and so forth.

“So, we are about to embark on a project where we refurbish this starting from the stacking area up until the end of this process. And this project is going to cost us between US$15 million and US$20 million. Right now we are in the process of finalizing financing of the project and identification of who will do it, what needs to be done. So, this is monumental for us.

“It is a project in a normal cement factory that can happen once in 10 years and we are very privileged to be part of that monumental event that will happen,” he said.

Chikwata said once the upgrade is complete, it will bring stability to the cement industry in terms of supply.

“Once in a while in our industry clinkers can become an issue. So, we have decided as Khayah to spend that money so that we not only stabilize Khaya Cement as an operation, but we also do the same for (the) cement industry,” he said.

Chikwata said the refurbishments are expected to take eight months to a year.

Meanwhile, Chikwata said ongoing massive government infrastructure and residential projects have boosted Khayah Cement’s operations.

“Just look at the boom that’s happening in individual house building. We definitely are getting quite a big jump going through there. The infrastructure developments that are happening, the dams, the roads, we also are part of that. Individual housing definitely has always been there, it has always been big and it’s growing,” he said.