Bamburi Cement is pursuing a commercial opportunity to supply locally manufactured construction materials for the Dangote East Africa Petroleum Refinery in Lamu. The company targets over one million tonnes of cement and concrete products for the mega project's construction. The refinery's groundbreaking was held in Lamu on September 30. Bamburi chief executive Geoffrey Ndugwa stated the company is ready to manufacture and deliver specialised cement and concrete from its Mombasa plant to the project site.
The civil and related construction works for the 700,000-barrel-per-day refinery will consume approximately one million tons of cement and concrete solutions. Bamburi is well-positioned to manufacture and deliver these materials from its Mombasa plant. The material requirement represents a significant opportunity for Kenya's cement industry. The Government has indicated that local manufacturers and suppliers are expected to participate in the refinery and wider petrochemical complex.
Bamburi is proposing its DuraCem 42.5 LH/SR, a speciality cement designed for aggressive environments. The product is manufactured at Bamburi's Mombasa plant by intergrinding Portland cement clinker with blast furnace slag. It has low heat of hydration, an attribute that can help reduce thermal cracking in large concrete pours. The company is also offering its Ultra-series speciality concrete.
The Dangote refinery is planned as the anchor investment in an integrated petroleum and petrochemical complex at the Lamu Port-South Sudan-Ethiopia Transport (LAPSSET) Corridor. The wider development is expected to include a 1,000MW power plant and facilities for fertiliser, plastics and chemical manufacturing. Government sources put the investment at about Sh2.2 trillion and project up to 60,000 direct jobs.
The scale of construction is already becoming evident. Kenya's State Department for Shipping and Maritime Affairs reported that a vessel carrying about 2,930 tonnes of construction equipment docked at Lamu Port on September 26. More than 110 pieces of equipment were later reported on site, with another 400 expected to arrive within 60 days.
The potential refinery contract comes as Bamburi undertakes a major expansion of its own production base. It has signed a $250 million engineering, procurement and construction contract with Sinoma CBMI Construction for a 1.6 million-tonne-a-year clinker plant in Matuga, Kwale County. The project is expected to raise Bamburi's clinker capacity from one million to 2.6 million tonnes and cement production capacity from 1.8 million to four million tonnes annually.
The additional capacity could strengthen Bamburi's ability to participate in large infrastructure projects along the Coast and elsewhere. However, the Matuga plant is a longer-term capacity expansion rather than the immediate source of the proposed refinery supply. Bamburi's products could be relevant to a project being developed in a coastal environment and involving extensive civil, foundation, marine and industrial infrastructure.
Key points
- Bamburi Cement targets over one million tonnes of cement and concrete products for the Dangote East Africa Petroleum Refinery.
- The Dangote refinery is a Sh2.2 trillion project expected to create up to 60,000 direct jobs.
- Bamburi is expanding its production base with a $250 million clinker plant in Matuga, Kwale County.
