PPC Cement improves mills, eyes exports

Business
CEMENT manufacturer, PPC Zimbabwe Limited, is set to spend about $75 million this year on its Harare mill as the company sets its sights on the export market, an official has said.

CEMENT manufacturer, PPC Zimbabwe Limited, is set to spend about $75 million this year on its Harare mill as the company sets its sights on the export market, an official has said.

by Our Correspondent

PPC Zimbabwe managing director Njombo Lekula said the construction of the Harare cement mill was well on course.

“We are spending about $75 million on our Harare mill this year and we are expecting to commission it in the first quarter of 2016,” said Lekula.

The managing director said they were also investing over $6 million dollars on their Bulawayo and Colleen Bawn plants aimed at improving production.

“We will be spending about $6,4 million for our two factories in Matabeleland, that is, Bulawayo and Colleen Bawn factory,” he said.

He said in the past three years, they had injected over $25 million in the Matabeleland region.

“We have spent a lot on our facilities and all of that is aimed at improving our productivity, service and efficiency. As PPC, in Matabeleland we did some work in Bulawayo and also at our plants in Colleen Bawn where we produce clinker.

“For the past three years we have spent about $15,5 million for the Bulawayo plant and at Colleen Bawn alone we have spent about $11,6 million in the past three years,” said Lekula.

The official however said its export market had been hit by low demand due to a number of reasons, chief among them, the strengthening of the United States dollar.

“We are exporting regularly although our exports dropped drastically at the beginning of this year. this was affected by the weather and also by the fact that our neighbouring countries have taken a knock from the strengthening of the United States dollar. I would say our exports are down by about 40%,” he said.

Lekula however expressed optimism that the export market is set to improve as the year progresses.

PPC is one of three major cement manufacturers in Zimbabwe along with Lafarge and Sino-Zimbabwe.

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