Twiga eyes 1.5m tonnes

Dar es Salaam. Tanzania Portland Cement (TPCC), which trades as Twiga Cement, said at the weekend that its production targets will not be deterred by ongoing illegal importation of vital construction materials.

The firm’s managing director, Mr Alfonso Rodriguez, said that the company will produce 1.5 million tonnes this year (2015), up from 1.4 million tonnes produced last year (2014).

The increased capacity follows last year’s commissioning of a new 700,000-tonne-production line.

“We managed to produce approximately 1.4 million tonnes last year but that was not what we had anticipated as our business is being affected by illegal importations of cement through various routes. However, we are confident of producing 1.5 million tonnes this year,” Mr Rodriguez told reporters on the sidelines of the firm’s 2015 Family Day celebrations.

He said that the government should put in place stern measures to curb malpractices in the market and create a level playing field for local producers and importers.

“We should all abide by the rules of doing business fairly by paying taxes accordingly and contribute to the economy,” he said.

Meanwhile, Mr Rodriguez said the company gives out a total of Sh250 million each year for construction of school laboratories, deforestation campaigns and activities pertaining to environmental protection across the country.

For a long time, local cement manufacturers have been complaining over what they term as cheap imports from Asia. They claim the imports are eating into their profits and creating an unfair playing ground.

They claim that imported cement is sold cheaply because Pakistan, India, China and Egypt do offer subsidies to their producers. The government for its part has maintained that it allowed the importation of subsidised cement to cover the market gap created by high demand pushed by the growing construction industry.

Tanzania Portland Cement is the biggest producer with a production capacity 1.9 million tonnes. It is estimated that the country imports about 250,000 tonnes annually to bridge the deficit gap.