The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has announced plans to construct a steel mill in north of Mozambique. The project is expected to cost US$39m, with IFC proposing to provide US$20m although the initial loan will be US$13.5m. The project has already been approved by Office for Economic Areas with Accelerated Development (Gazeda) and the Bank of Mozambique.
IFC, which is a member of the World Bank Group that promotes development in Africa by focusing on the private sector, will build the Mozambique steel mill plant in the Special Economic Zone at the port of Nacala.
The steel manufacturing factory is expected to manufacture products used in low-cost housing such as coloured galvanized roofing sheets. The factory will be known as MM Integrated Steel Mills Mozambique and will be a subsidiary of the Tanzanian conglomerate Motisun Group.
IFC said in a press release that, “MMI Steel will be the first roofing sheet manufacturing plant in Mozambique with integrated facilities from cold rolling to profiling”.
Founder of Motisun, Subhash Patel said the steel manufacturing factory will help meet demand at competitive prices. “Mozambique is a fast growing market that will require local building materials to meet expanding housing needs. Our integrated facilities at Nacala will enable us to provide customized roofing sheets of various thickness, colour and sizes at a competitive price,” he said.
The company currently has its manufacturing operations in Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia. It also plans to expand into Ghana to serve West Africa. The steel mill in Dar es Salaam produces 24,000 tones of corrugated iron sheet per annum while that in Zambia producing 4,000 tonnes a month, and that in Uganda producing 50,000 metric tonnes a year.
Still in this region, Hebei Iron and Steel Co were planning to construct a steel mill in South Africa, a project that would see production of five metric tons of steel by 2019. Production was set to start this year. Agni Steel mill located in Port Elizabeth Coega Industrial Development Zone (IDZ) in the Eastern Cape, SA was also planning for expansion.
