Plans for the construction of the proposed Sinoma cement plant in the Tanzanian city of Tanga makes good progress with the beginning of the compensation exercise of approximately 94 Project Affected Persons (PAP) in a bid to pave way for the actual construction works.
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This milestone was announced by Tanga Regional Commissioner, Martine Shigela. The 94 PAP are residents of Amboni and Mtimbwani districts who agreed to give up their land totaling up to 1280 acres four years ago for the construction of the US$1 bn cement factory.
The talk for the compensation involved all parties including the investor and the public. Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC) played a big role in seeing that all parties involved reached a settlement.
The largest cement firm in East Africa
The Sinoma cement factory project will be carried out by China’s state-run Sinoma International Engineering Co. Ltd, a subsidiary of China National Building Materials Group Corp (CNBM), in collaboration with Hengya Cement Co. Ltd.
Upon completion of the construction of Sinoma cement plant, it is expected to be the largest cement firm in the East African region, with the capacity to produce approximately 7 million tons of cement per annum. At least 70% of the cement produced at the plant will be exported to neighboring countries such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and the Republics of Uganda and Sudan, while the remaining 30 percent will be sold in the domestic market.
The construction of Sinoma cement plant also includes the construction of a power plant with the capacity to generate 1200MW of electricity using coal. This electricity will be mainly used to power the cement factory.
Furthermore, according to a press release from the office of the prime minister of the East African country dated back in 2017, the Chinese consortium will also construct a wharf at the Port of Tanga to facilitate the export of cement from the plant.
