Construction of the cement plant, Zim in Zimbabwe, will be completed by 2016 according to PPC Zimbabwe division. The plant will all cost US$ 80m upon completion.
The company’s managing director Mr Njombo Nekula said Environmental Impact Assessment for the Zim Plant project was already approved, and construction has begun.
The new Zim mill in Harare will give a competitive advantage to the company, and help reduce production costs since the company was importing cement manufactured away from the main market in Bulawayo. PPC also operates other cement production plants at Cementside in Bulawayo and Colleen Bawn in Matabeleland South.
“The EIA for the project has been approved and construction has started and we are expecting the plant to be functional by March 2016,” said Mr Nekula.
The construction of Zim plant will see the company add a 100 tonnes per hour cement in production. He said the Zim plant project will be funded through corporate loans.
PPC Zimbabwe recently announced that it had secured about $18 million to finance the construction project.
The company has also launched Surebuild, a new cement product that targets brick makers. Nekula has also indicated that the product will help the firm consolidate its position as a leading producer of cement.